20 Mid-Cap Stocks Insiders Were Buying in Q1 2025

7. Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Market Cap: $2.34 billion

Ashland, headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, is a specialty materials company that operates through four segments: Life Sciences, Personal Care, Specialty Additives, and Intermediates. It provides ingredients and solutions for pharmaceuticals, personal care, coatings, construction, energy, food and beverage, and other industrial markets. Ashland is also one of the 11 most expensive stocks insiders are buying recently.

On January 31, two company insiders, one of whom was CEO Guillermo Novo, purchased Ashland stock totaling $2.21 million at an average price of $64.12 per share. The CEO accounted for the bulk of the purchase, acquiring 31,294 shares valued at approximately $2.01 million. This was Novo’s first purchase in nearly five years. Year-to-date, the stock is down 30.66%, trading at $49.55 per share. Over the past 12 months, the stock has dropped 47.23%.

In the first quarter of fiscal 2024, Ashland reported $405 million in sales, a 14% decrease from the same quarter in 2023. The company posted a net loss of $165 million, a sharp decline from the $26 million profit reported a year earlier. During the quarter, Ashland also entered into a definitive agreement to divest its Avoca business.

Six analysts rate Ashland stock as a “Moderate Buy” with a price target of $73.20 per share, suggesting an upside of 47.91% from the latest price.