ASHASHLAND INC.
Wholesale-Chemicals & Allied Products
- Revenue
- $1.8B
- 14% YoY
- Operating margin
- -42.5%
- 3353% YoY
- EBITDA
- −$538M
- 317% YoY
- Market cap
- $4.6B
- Employees
- 2,900
- $629K revenue each
- Net debt / EBITDA
- —
- $946M net debt
- AI in 10-K
- 0.1
- mentions per 10K words
Takeover score 5 of 13
Fixable underperformance 2 of 7
- TSR below peersNo—3+ of last 5 years
- High CEO pay despite TSRNo—Median CEO pay ≥ $15M while TSR trails
- Earnings not backed by cashYes27% of net incomeCash flow under 80% of net income
- Dilutive SBCNo1% of revenueOver 10% of revenue
- Payouts exceed cash flowYes131% of cash flowBuybacks + dividends over cash flow
- Goodwill-heavyNo15% of assetsOver 40% of assets
- Shareholder dissentNo97% lowest supportAny vote under 80% support
Buyer economics 2 of 4
- Low revenue per employeeNo$629K · 31st pctBottom quartile of its SIC industry
- Quiet on AIYes0.1 per 10K words · 9th pctBottom quartile of AI mentions in 10-Ks
- Net cashNo—More cash than debt, positive EBITDA
- Buyout-sizedYes$4.6B market capMarket cap $500M–$5B
Catalysts 1 of 2
- Active 13DYes1 filingActive-intent 13D in 18 months
- Net insider sellingNo$0 netNet sales over $10M in 12 months
Financials
| Metric | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.1B | $2.4B | $2.2B | $2.1B | $1.8B | 14% |
| Operating income | $192M | $333M | $172M | −$26M | −$775M | 2881% |
| Operating cash flow | $466M | $193M | $294M | $462M | $134M | 71% |
| Capex | $105M | $113M | $170M | $137M | $98M | 28% |
| Stock-based comp | $15M | $18M | $22M | $15M | $14M | 6.7% |
| Buybacks | $450M | $200M | $300M | $380M | $100M | 74% |
| Dividends | $70M | $70M | $76M | $78M | $76M | 2.6% |
Deal filings
None.
13D filers
| Filed | Filer | Form | Stake | Intent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 2026 | Standard Investments LLC | SCHEDULE 13D/A | 8.9% | Passive |
| May 12, 2026 | Standard Investments LLC | SCHEDULE 13D/A | 23.6% | Passive |
| May 6, 2026 | Standard Investments LLC | SCHEDULE 13D/A | 6.8% | Passive |
| Dec 1, 2025 | Standard Investments LLC | SCHEDULE 13D | 22.9% | Active |
| Jan 31, 2025 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SCHEDULE 13D/A | 0.0% | Passive |
| Apr 25, 2024 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SC 13D/A | 6.4% | Passive |
| Jun 14, 2022 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SC 13D/A | 7.5% | Passive |
| Nov 18, 2020 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SC 13D/A | 6.7% | Passive |
| Dec 12, 2019 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SC 13D/A | 9.4% | Active |
| Jun 13, 2019 | EMINENCE CAPITAL, LP | SC 13D | 8.3% | Active |
Insider trading
No open-market trades in the last 12 months.
Pay vs performance
No pay-versus-performance disclosure yet.