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Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)
 6 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2025
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Basis of Presentation

Basis of presentation

The accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with United States ("U.S.") generally accepted accounting principles for interim financial reporting ("U.S. GAAP") and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") regulations. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. These Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements omit certain information and footnote disclosures required for complete annual financial statements and, therefore, should be read in conjunction with the Ashland Inc. and consolidated subsidiaries ("Ashland" or the "Company") Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, filed with the SEC on November 18, 2024. Results of operations for the period ended March 31, 2025, are not necessarily indicative of the expected results for the remainder of the fiscal year.

Ashland is comprised of the following reportable segments: Life Sciences, Personal Care, Specialty Additives and Intermediates. Unallocated and Other includes corporate governance activities and certain legacy matters. For additional information about Ashland's reportable segments, see Note Q of the Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
Use of Estimates, Risks and Uncertainties

Use of estimates, risks and uncertainties

The preparation of Ashland’s Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and the disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. Significant items that are subject to such estimates and assumptions include, but are not limited to, environmental remediation, asbestos litigation, accounting for goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets and income taxes. Although management bases its estimates on historical experience and various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, actual results could differ significantly from the estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

Ashland’s results are affected by domestic and international economic, political, legislative, regulatory and legal actions. Economic conditions, such as recessionary trends, inflation, interest and monetary exchange rates, government fiscal policies and changes in the prices of certain key raw materials, can have a significant effect on operations. While Ashland maintains reserves for anticipated liabilities and carries various levels of insurance, Ashland could be affected by civil, criminal, regulatory or administrative actions, claims or proceedings relating to asbestos, environmental remediation, income taxes or other matters.
New Accounting Pronouncements

New accounting pronouncements

A description of new U.S. GAAP accounting standards issued or adopted during the current year is required in interim financial reporting. A detailed listing of new accounting standards relevant to Ashland is included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024.

Since that date, in November 2024, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") No. 2024-03, “Income Statement—Reporting Comprehensive Income—Expense Disaggregation Disclosures” (“ASU 2024-03”) to expand expense disclosures by requiring disaggregated disclosure of certain income statement expense line items, including those that contain purchases of inventory, employee compensation, depreciation and amortization. ASU 2024-03 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2026, or Ashland's fiscal 2028, and subsequent interim periods, with early adoption permitted. The amendments should be applied prospectively, but retrospective application is permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact of the requirements on our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

No other new accounting pronouncements recently adopted or issued had or are expected to have a material impact on the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments Policy

For assets that are measured using quoted prices in active markets (Level 1), the total fair value is the published market price per unit multiplied by the number of units held without consideration of transaction costs. Assets and liabilities that are measured using significant other observable inputs (Level 2) are primarily valued by reference to quoted prices of similar assets or liabilities in active markets, adjusted for any terms specific to that asset or liability. For all other assets and liabilities for which unobservable inputs are used (Level 3), fair value is derived through the use of fair value models, such as a discounted cash flow model or other standard pricing models that Ashland deems reasonable.
Inventories Inventories are carried at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Inventories are stated at cost using the weighted-average cost method. This method values inventories using average costs for raw materials and most recent production costs for labor and overhead.
Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Goodwill

Ashland tests goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment annually as of July 1 or whenever events and circumstances indicate an impairment may have occurred.

No indicators of impairment were identified during the three and six months ended March 31, 2025.
Finite-Lived Intangible Asset Other intangible assets principally consist of trademarks and trade names, intellectual property and customer and supplier relationships. Intangible assets classified as finite are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives. The cost of trademarks and trade names is amortized principally over 3 to 20 years, intellectual property over 3 to 20 years, and customer and supplier relationships over 10 to 24 years.
Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Intangible Assets, Indefinite-Lived

Ashland annually reviews, as of July 1, indefinite-lived intangible assets for possible impairment or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that carrying amounts may not be recoverable.

No indicators of impairment were identified during the three and six months ended March 31, 2025, other than the other intangible assets within the Avoca business. See Note B of the Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.
Commitments and Contingencies Policy

Ashland is subject to liabilities from claims alleging personal injury caused by exposure to asbestos. Such claims result from indemnification obligations undertaken in 1990 in connection with the sale of Riley and the acquisition of Hercules in November 2008. Although Riley, a former subsidiary, was neither a producer nor a manufacturer of asbestos, its industrial boilers contained some asbestos-containing components provided by other companies. Hercules, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Ashland, has liabilities from claims alleging personal injury caused by exposure to asbestos. Such claims typically arise from alleged exposure to asbestos fibers from resin encapsulated pipe and tank products sold by one of Hercules’ former subsidiaries to a limited industrial market.

To assist in developing and annually updating independent reserve estimates for future asbestos claims and related costs given various assumptions for Ashland and Hercules asbestos claims, Ashland retained third party actuarial experts Gnarus. The methodology used by Gnarus to project future asbestos costs is based largely on recent experience, including claim-filing and settlement rates, disease mix, open claims and litigation defense. The claim experience of Ashland and Hercules are separately compared to the results of previously conducted third party epidemiological studies estimating the number of people likely to develop asbestos-related diseases. Those studies were undertaken in connection with national analyses of the population expected to have been exposed to asbestos. Using that information, Gnarus estimates a range of the number of future claims that may be filed, as well as the related costs that may be incurred in resolving those claims. Changes in asbestos-related liabilities and receivables are recorded on an after-tax basis within the income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of income taxes caption in the Statements of Condensed Consolidated Comprehensive Income (Loss).
Environmental Cost Policy

The total reserves for environmental remediation reflect Ashland’s estimates of the most likely costs that will be incurred over an extended period to remediate identified conditions for which the costs are reasonably estimable, without regard to any third-party recoveries. Engineering studies, historical experience and other factors are used to identify and evaluate remediation alternatives and their related costs in determining the estimated reserves for environmental remediation. Ashland regularly adjusts its reserves as environmental remediation continues. Ashland has estimated the value of its probable insurance recoveries associated with its environmental reserve based on management’s interpretations and estimates surrounding the available or applicable insurance coverage. At March 31, 2025 and September 30, 2024, Ashland’s recorded receivables for these probable insurance recoveries were $12 million and $13 million, respectively, of which $10 million and $11 million at March 31, 2025 and September 30, 2024, respectively, were classified in other noncurrent assets on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Earnings Per Share . The total number of these shares outstanding was approximately 1 million at March 31, 2025 and 2024. The majority of these shares are for warrants with a strike price of $128.66. Earnings per share is reported under the treasury stock method.

 

 

Three months ended

 

 

Six months ended

 

 

 

March 31

 

 

March 31

 

(In millions, except per share data)

 

2025

 

 

2024

 

 

2025

 

 

2024

 

Numerator

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Numerator for basic and diluted EPS - Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax

 

$

30

 

 

$

121

 

 

$

(136

)

 

$

149

 

Denominator

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Denominator for basic EPS - Weighted-average common shares outstanding

 

 

47

 

 

 

50

 

 

 

47

 

 

 

50

 

Share based awards convertible to common shares

 

 

—

 

 

 

1

 

 

 

—

 

 

 

1

 

Denominator for diluted EPS - Adjusted weighted-average shares and assumed conversions

 

 

47

 

 

 

51

 

 

 

47

 

 

 

51

 

EPS from continuing operations

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basic

 

$

0.63

 

 

$

2.43

 

 

$

(2.91

)

 

$

2.95

 

Diluted(a)

 

 

0.63

 

 

 

2.40

 

 

 

(2.91

)

 

 

2.92