UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

____________

 

FORM 11-K

 

FOR ANNUAL REPORTS OF EMPLOYEE STOCK

PURCHASE, SAVINGS AND SIMILAR PLANS

PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

(Mark One):

 

 ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023

 

OR

 

 TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the transition period from __________ to __________

 

Commission File Number 333-211719

 

A. Full title of the plan and the address of the plan, if different from that of the issuer named below:

 

ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN

 

B. Name of issuer of the securities held pursuant to the plan and the address of its principal executive office:

 

ASHLAND INC.

8145 Blazer Drive

Wilmington, Delaware 19808

 

Telephone Number (302) 995-3000

 

 

 

 

---

ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SCHEDULES

 

December 31, 2023 and 2022 and for the year ended

December 31, 2023, with Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

		Page
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm		3
Audited Financial Statements
Statements of Net Assets Available for Benefits		4
Statement of Changes in Net Assets Available for Benefits		5
Notes to Financial Statements		6
Supplemental Schedule *
Schedule H; Line 4i – Schedule of Assets (Held at End of Year)		15

 

* Other schedules required by Section 2520.103-10 of the Department of Labor’s Rules and Regulations for Reporting and Disclosure under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 have been omitted because they are not applicable.

 

---

 

report of INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

 

To the Investment and Administrative Oversight Committee

and Participants of the Ashland Employee Savings Plan

Wilmington, Delaware

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying statements of net assets available for benefits of the Ashland Employee Savings Plan (the “Plan”) as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, and the related statement of changes in net assets available for benefits for the year ended December 31, 2023, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the net assets available for benefits of the Plan as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, and the changes in net assets available for benefits for the year ended December 31, 2023, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Plan’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Plan’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Plan in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Plan is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Plan’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Supplemental Information

The supplemental information contained in Schedule H: Line 4i, has been subjected to audit procedures performed in conjunction with the audit of the Plan's financial statements. The supplemental information is the responsibility of the Plan's management. Our audit procedures included determining whether the supplemental information reconciles to the financial statements or the underlying accounting and other records, as applicable, and performing procedures to test the completeness and accuracy of the information presented in the supplemental information. In forming our opinion on the supplemental information, we evaluated whether the supplemental information, including its form and content, is presented in conformity with the Department of Labor's Rules and Regulations for Reporting and Disclosure under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. In our opinion, the supplemental information is fairly stated, in all material respects, in relation to the financial statements as a whole.

 

/S/ Blue and Co

 

 

We have served as the Plan’s auditor since 2011.

Lexington, Kentucky

May 23, 2024

---

ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN

 

STATEMENTS OF NET ASSETS AVAILABLE FOR BENEFITS

 

		December 31
(in thousands)		2023				2022
Assets
Interest in the Ashland Inc Savings Plan Master Trust:
Investments at fair value		$	1,107,917			$	992,297
Investment contracts at contract value			149,268				198,899
Receivables:
Participant contributions			488				449
Employer contributions			396				385
Notes receivable from participants			9,075				12,183
Total assets			1,267,144				1,204,213
Liabilities
Accrued expenses			117				453
Total liabilities			117				453
Net assets available for benefits		$	1,267,027			$	1,203,760

 

 

See accompanying notes to financial statements.

---

ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN

 

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS AVAILABLE FOR BENEFITS

 

Year Ended December 31, 2023

 

(in thousands)
Additions to net assets attributed to:
Contributions:
Participants	$	16,885
Employers		13,275
Rollover		2,363
Loan interest		544
Plan interest in Ashland Inc Savings Plan Master Trust investment gain		179,822
Total additions		212,889
Deductions from net assets attributed to:
Benefits paid to participants		(146,354	)
Benefits paid -other		(2,518	)
Administrative expenses		(565	)
Total deductions		(149,437	)
Plan transfers		(185	)
Net change in plan assets		63,267
Net assets available for benefits, beginning of year		1,203,760
Net assets available for benefits, end of year	$	1,267,027

 

 

See accompanying notes to financial statements.

 

 

---

ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

December 31, 2023 and 2022

(In thousands, except participant and per share data)

NOTE A – DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAN

The following description of the Ashland Employee Savings Plan (Plan) provides only general information. The information in this Note is not a Summary Plan Description or Plan document, as these terms are defined under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Instead, this information merely summarizes selected aspects of the Plan. Read the Summary Plan Description or the Plan document for more information about the Plan. The Plan document controls the terms of the Plan and supersedes any inconsistencies contained herein or in the Summary Plan Description. The Ashland Inc. Investment and Administrative Oversight Committee (the IAOC), as Plan Administrator, retains all rights to determine, interpret and apply the Plan’s terms to factual matters and matters of law. This retained discretionary authority is more particularly described in the Summary Plan Description and in the Plan document.

General

The Plan is a contributory, defined contribution plan and covers active regular employees in groups designated by Ashland, the Plan sponsor, as eligible to participate in accordance with Plan documents. The Plan is intended to qualify under sections 401(a), 401(k), and 401(m) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), and under section 404(c) of ERISA.

Contributions

Eligibility and Employee Contributions

Employees in designated eligible groups may immediately enroll in the Plan, regardless of the amount of Company service.

Participants may make pre-tax contributions, pursuant to the terms of the Plan and Section 401(k) of the IRC. The Plan utilizes a safe harbor design under Section 401(k)(12) of the IRC. The Plan also allows participants to make after-tax Roth 401(k) contributions. Ashland and its participating subsidiaries also make matching contributions related to participant contributions, subject to applicable limitations in the Plan and IRC. All employees are eligible for Ashland’s matching contribution immediately upon participation.

Participants may contribute from 1% to 65% of eligible compensation in whole number percentage increments. Excluding catch-up contributions, participants were limited to contributions of $22,500 in 2023. Newly hired eligible employees are automatically enrolled in the Plan for a contribution of 4%. Employees have the opportunity to elect a different amount before the automatic contributions are withheld. The contributions are invested in the Plan’s default investment option if the employee does not make a different investment election. The default investment option is the Vanguard Target Retirement Trust Fund that most closely matches the employee’s assumed retirement date, based on the employee’s age at the time of enrollment. These investments gradually become more conservative over time and are Common/Collective Trusts. The automatic enrollment rules do not apply to certain hourly paid employees.

Eligible employees who are at least age 50 by December 31 can make catch-up contributions in addition to the regular contribution. Catch-up contributions are pre-tax contributions from an eligible participant’s compensation in excess of a plan-imposed limit or the legal pre-tax contribution limit. Therefore, the eligible participant’s contributions must first reach a plan-imposed limit or the legal pre-tax contribution limit before

---

any contributions are characterized as catch-up contributions. These employees may contribute a maximum of $7,500 as catch-up contributions for 2023.

Employer Contributions

Ashland Inc. and its participating subsidiaries contribute up to 4% of eligible compensation as a matching contribution to a participant’s contributions. Ashland’s matching contribution is $1.00 for each $1.00 the participant contributes up to the maximum participant contribution percentage. Matching contributions are calculated on a payroll by payroll basis and can be made in cash or Ashland Inc. Common Stock. If matching contributions are made directly to the Plan in common stock, then such contributions shall be invested in the Ashland Common Stock Fund and can be moved at any point thereafter by the Plan participant. All matching contributions made in cash shall be invested pursuant to the participant’s investment elections thereby mirroring the participant’s contributions. During 2023, all employer matching contributions made to the Plan were in cash.

Basic Retirement Contributions

Employees who were eligible to participate in the Plan as of December 31, 2010 and who were not eligible for future contributions under the Ashland Hercules Pension Plan (Grandfathered Employee), shall be entitled to a Basic Retirement Contribution based on a percentage of the employee’s compensation. Effective January 1, 2017, Ashland amended the plan to fix the percentage of compensation at 4%. Additionally, this amendment expanded eligibility for certain employees whose pension plan accruals were frozen and eliminated the transition contribution that was previously permitted under the Plan.

Other Contributions

Effective November 1, 2008, the Plan was amended designating the Ashland Common Stock Fund investment option as an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). The ESOP component of the Plan allows dividends paid on Ashland Inc. Common Stock held in the fund to be passed through to participants and beneficiaries. Participants and beneficiaries may elect to have the dividends passed through and paid to them or to have the dividends reinvested. If a participant or beneficiary fails to make an affirmative election, the default is to reinvest the dividends. Dividends that are reinvested and paid into the Ashland Common Stock Fund are allocated proportionately to participants and beneficiaries on the basis of each participant’s and beneficiary’s investment in the fund and used to purchase additional units in the Ashland Common Stock Fund. Amounts allocated to the portion of the Plan that is an ESOP may still be exchanged to other investments in the Plan and other investments in the Plan may be exchanged into the ESOP component of the Plan.

Vesting

The Plan provides for immediate vesting of all employer and employee contributions regardless of the employee’s length of participation in the Plan or service with the employer. However, to preserve the qualified status of the Plan with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), there are certain restrictions on the employee’s right to withdraw contributions and any earnings thereon while actively employed by Ashland or its subsidiaries. If a participant or beneficiary entitled to a benefit cannot be located, the vested benefit is forfeited. If such a participant or beneficiary makes a proper claim prior to the termination of the Plan, the forfeited benefit shall be restored in an amount equal to the amount forfeited, unadjusted for any gains or losses.

Voting Rights

Participants may instruct the trustee on how to vote shares of Ashland Inc. Common Stock held in their Ashland Common Stock Fund account and are notified by the trustee prior to the time such rights are to be

---

exercised. The trustee will vote fractional shares and shares for which it received no instructions in the same proportion as the voting instructions on allocated shares received from participants. Participants may also direct the trustee on how to respond if a tender offer is made for Ashland Inc. Common Stock. If no instructions are received from a participant on a tender offer, it will be considered to be instruction to the trustee not to respond to the offer.

Participant Accounts

Each participant’s account is credited with the participant’s contribution and allocations of (a) Ashland’s contribution and (b) Plan earnings (losses), and charged a fixed fee for reimbursable administrative expenses. The benefit to which a participant is entitled is the benefit that can be provided from the participant’s vested account.

Rollovers

Participants may elect to rollover amounts from other qualified plans into this Plan in accordance with the guidelines required by the Plan and the IRC.

Notes Receivable from Participants

Any participant can obtain a loan from the Plan for any reason and may hold up to two loans at any one time. Loans cannot exceed the lesser of (a) 50% of the participant’s account balance or (b) $50,000 reduced by the difference between the highest outstanding loan balance during the 12 months before the loan and the actual balance on the date of the loan. Participants’ plan accounts will be security for the loan. Each loan bears interest at rates ranging from 3.25% to 10.5% as determined by the Trustee. Loans must be repaid within five years in equal installment amounts determined by the Plan sponsor. However, loans transferred into the Plan under terms authorized under prior plans will continue to be amortized in accordance with the original terms of those loans. Loan interest compounds monthly at an annual rate equal to the prime rate on the last business day of the month before the loan is made plus 1%. Interest on the loan will be credited to the participant’s account as the loan is repaid as investment earnings. The loan repayments and the interest payments are then invested among the Plan investment options in the same percentage as the participant’s contributions. Delinquent loans are recorded as a distribution based upon the terms of the Plan document.

Loans are offset against the participant’s account and the related portion does not share in any income, expenses, gains, or losses (other than the interest on the loan) which are realized by the Plan. Loans are recorded at their unpaid principal balance, plus any accrued but unpaid interest.

Payments of Benefits

Participants may withdraw a certain portion of their account while employed. The portion that can be withdrawn depends upon whether the employee is age 59-½ and the source of funds. Only one such withdrawal is allowed in any 12-month period and the withdrawal cannot exceed the current value of the total account.

Upon termination of employment, the participant, or beneficiary in the event of death, may receive the entire value of the account in either a lump sum payment or installments paid monthly, quarterly, or annually over a limited period of time. If the total value of the account is $1,000 or less, the value of the account will be distributed in a lump sum without the participant’s consent.

Plan Termination

Although it has not expressed any intention to do so, Ashland reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to amend, suspend, modify, interpret, discontinue, or terminate the Plan or change the funding method at any

---

time without the requirement to give cause or consideration to any individual, subject to the provisions set forth in ERISA. No accounting treatment or funding of the Plan shall be deemed evidence of intent to limit in any way the right to amend or terminate the Plan.

NOTE B – SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of Presentation

The financial statements have been prepared on the accrual basis of accounting.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the financial statements and accompanying notes in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles requires the Plan’s management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Master Trust

The investments of the Plan are pooled with the investments of the Ashland Union Employee Savings Plan (formerly known as the Hercules Plan), the International Specialty Products Inc. 401(k) Plan (ISP Plan) and the Pharmachem Profit Sharing Plan in a master trust pursuant to an amended agreement between Fidelity Management Trust Company, the trustee, and Ashland — Ashland Inc Savings Plan Master Trust (the Master Trust), effective October 1, 2012.

Investments

The Plan’s investment in the Master Trust is stated at fair value based on the fair value of the underlying investments of the Master Trust. These investments are determined primarily by quoted market prices (see Note E).

Investment Contracts

Investment contracts held by a defined contribution plan are required to be reported at fair value, except for fully benefit-responsive investment contracts. Contract value is the relevant measure for the portion of the net assets available for benefits of a defined contribution plan attributable to fully benefit-responsive investment contracts because contract value is the amount participants normally would receive if they were to initiate permitted transactions under the terms of the Plan.

Income and Expense Recognition

Purchases and sales of securities are recorded on a trade-date basis. Interest income is recorded on the accrual basis. Dividends are recorded on the ex-dividend date. Net appreciation (depreciation) includes the Master Trust’s gains and losses on investments bought and sold as well as held during the year. This activity is presented as “Plan interest in Ashland Inc. Savings Plan Master Trust investment income (expense)” on the Statement of Changes in Net Assets Available for Benefits.

Payment of Benefits

Benefits are recorded when paid.

Administrative Expenses

Investments advisory, legal and audit fees are split evenly by the participants and Ashland. Participants pay loan initiation and maintenance fees, short-term redemption fees and overnight charges. Recordkeeping and certain other fees are paid by the participants through a fixed, per person account charge.

---

NOTE C – MASTER TRUST INVESTMENTS

The Plan's investments are in the Master Trust, which was established for the investment of assets of the Plan and the other Ashland sponsored retirement plans. The Master Trust allocates certain individual assets to each plan participating in the Master Trust arrangement. Therefore, the investment results from certain individual assets of the Plan may not reflect its proportionate interest in the Master Trust.

The following table presents the net assets, including investments, receivables, and liabilities, of the Master Trust and the Plan's interest in the net assets of the Master Trust as of December 31:

 

	2023								2022
	Master Trust Balances				Plan's Interest in Master Trust Balances				Master Trust Balances				Plan's Interest in Master Trust Balances
Investments, at fair value:
Ashland Common Stock Fund
Money Market Fund	$	523			$	486			$	661			$	617
Ashland Inc. Common Stock		51,229				47,556				68,296				63,718
Shares of Registered Investment Companies		164,522				139,865				193,456				166,845
Common/Collective Trusts		1,052,023				916,443				874,957				759,161
Stable Value Fund Money Market Fund		3,999				3,567				2,178				1,956
Total investments at fair value		1,272,296				1,107,917				1,139,548				992,297
Investments, at contract value:
Stable Value Fund Investment Contracts		167,331				149,268				221,417				198,899
Total investments at contract value		167,331				149,268				221,417				198,899
Net Master Trust assets	$	1,439,627			$	1,257,185			$	1,360,965			$	1,191,196

 

The following table presents the net appreciation in investments (including gains and losses on investments bought and sold, as well as held during the year) and investment income (expense) in the Master Trust for the year ended December 31:

 

	2023
Net realized and unrealized appreciation in fair value of investments	$	195,382
Investment income:
Dividends		6,824
Interest		4,299
		11,123
Total	$	206,505

 

NOTE D – INVESTMENT CONTRACTS

The investment contracts held by the Master Trust in the Stable Value Fund are known as synthetic account guaranteed investment contracts (GICs).

In a synthetic GIC structure, the underlying investments are owned by the Master Trust and held in the trust for plan participants. The contract values of the synthetic GIC contracts including unsettled receivables and payables at December 31, 2023 and 2022 were $167,331 and $221,417, respectively.

The synthetic account GIC instruments have wrapper contracts that are purchased from an insurance company or bank. The wrapper contracts amortize the realized and unrealized gains and losses on the underlying fixed income investments, typically over the duration of the investments, through adjustments to the future interest crediting rate. The contract value assigned to the wrapper contracts at December 31, 2023 and 2022 was zero.

---

The key factors that influence the future interest crediting rates include: the level of market interest rates; the amount and timing of participant contributions, transfers, and withdrawals into and out of the contract; the investment returns generated by the underlying fixed income investments; and the duration of the underlying investments.

To determine the interest crediting rate, wrapper contracts use a formula that is based on the characteristics of the underlying fixed income portfolio, including the contract interest credit rate, yield to maturity of underlying investments, market value of underlying investments, contract value, duration of the portfolio, and wrapper contract fees. The wrapper contracts amortize the realized and unrealized gains and losses on the underlying fixed income investments, typically over the duration of the investments, through adjustments to the future interest crediting rate. The interest crediting rates of the contracts are typically reset on a quarterly basis. All wrapper contracts provide for a minimum interest crediting of zero percent.

Limits to Ability to Transact at Fair Value

In certain circumstances, the amount withdrawn from a wrapper contract would be payable at fair value rather than at contract value. These circumstances include termination of the Plan, a material adverse change to the provisions of the Plan, if Ashland withdraws from a wrapper contract in order to switch to a different investment provider, or if the terms of a successor plan do not meet the wrapper contract issuer’s underwriting criteria. The circumstances described above that could result in payment of benefits at market value rather than contract value are not probable of occurring in the foreseeable future.

Issuer-Initiated Contract Termination

Examples of events that would permit a wrapper contract issuer to terminate a wrapper contract upon short notice include the Plan’s loss of its qualified status, material and adverse changes to the provisions of the Plan, or uncured material breaches of responsibilities. If one of these events was to occur, the wrapper contract issuer could terminate the wrapper contract at the market value of the underlying investments, or in the case of a traditional GIC, at the hypothetical market value based upon a contractual formula.

NOTE E – FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

FASB Accounting Standards Codification 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, provides the framework for measuring fair value. That framework provides a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value into three broad levels. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3). An instrument’s categorization within the fair value hierarchy is based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the instrument’s fair value measurement. The three levels within the fair value hierarchy are described as follows:

Level 1 – Observable inputs such as unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2 – Inputs, other than quoted prices included in Level 1, which are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These include quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active.

Level 3 – Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability for which there is little, if any, market activity at the measurement date.

---

As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Plan held no investments outside of its interest held in the Master Trust. The following table sets forth by level, within the fair value hierarchy, the Master Trust’s investment assets at fair value as of December 31, 2023:

 

	Level 1				Level 2				Level 3				Total
Ashland Common Stock Fund
Money Market Fund	$	523			$	—			$	—			$	523
Ashland Inc. Common Stock		51,229				—				—				51,229
Shares of Registered Investment Companies		164,522				—				—				164,522
Stable Value Fund Money Market Fund		3,999				—				—				3,999
Total assets in the fair value hierarchy		220,273				—				—				220,273
Common/Collective Trusts (a)		—				—				—				1,052,023
Investments at fair value	$	220,273			$	—			$	—			$	1,272,296

 

The following table sets forth by level, within the fair value hierarchy, the Master Trust’s investment assets at fair value as of December 31, 2022:

 

	Level 1				Level 2				Level 3				Total
Ashland Common Stock Fund
Money Market Fund	$	661			$	—			$	—			$	661
Ashland Inc. Common Stock		68,296				—				—				68,296
Shares of Registered Investment Companies		193,456				—				—				193,456
Stable Value Fund Money Market Fund		2,178				—				—				2,178
Total assets in the fair value hierarchy		264,591				—				—				264,591
Common/Collective Trusts (a)		—				—				—				874,957
Investments at fair value	$	264,591			$	—			$	—			$	1,139,548

 

Following is a description of the valuation methodologies used for assets measured at fair value as of December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Money Market Funds, Shares of Registered Investment Companies, Ashland Inc. Common Stock – Valued at the quoted market price of shares held by the Plan at year-end.

Common/Collective Trusts (CCT) – Valued using a Net Asset Value (NAV). The NAV of a CCT is based on the market values of the underlying securities. The beneficial interest of each investor is represented in units. Units are issued and redeemed daily at the fund's closing NAV.

Investments Measured Using Net Asset Value per Share Practical Expedient – The following table sets forth the investments valued at NAV as of December 31, 2023:

 

	Fair Value				Unfunded Commitments		Redemption Frequency		Other Redemption Restrictions		Redemption Notice Period
Common/Collective Trusts	$	1,052,023			None		Daily		None		None

The following table sets forth the investments valued at NAV as of December 31, 2022:

 

	Fair Value				Unfunded Commitments		Redemption Frequency		Other Redemption Restrictions		Redemption Notice Period
Common/Collective Trusts	$	874,957			None		Daily		None		None

 

---

NOTE F – TRANSACTIONS WITH RELATED PARTIES

The Plan’s portion of the Master Trust held 564,803 and 592,592 shares of Ashland Inc. Common Stock as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, with a fair value of $47,556 and $63,718, respectively. The Plan’s interest in the Master Trust received dividends on Ashland Inc. Common Stock of $879 in 2023. The remaining dividends relate to certain Master Trust investments classified as Shares of Registered Investment Companies. Fidelity Management Trust Company acts as the Trustee and Recordkeeper of the Plan. PIMCO, an Allianz Global Investors company, Newport Trust Company and Fiducient Advisors LLC were also providers of fiduciary services to the Master Trust during the year.

Fees of $565 were paid by the Plan for investment management. Costs paid by Ashland are not charged to the Plan or Master Trust for services it performs on behalf of the Plan.

NOTE G – DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND FORM 5500

The following is a reconciliation of net assets available for benefits per the financial statements to Form 5500:

 

		December 31
		2023				2022
Net assets available for benefits per financial statements		$	1,267,027			$	1,203,760
Benefit claims payable			(49	)			(73	)
Receivable on deemed distributions of participant loans			—				(2,524	)
Net assets available for benefits per Form 5500		$	1,266,978			$	1,201,163

The following is a reconciliation of the changes in net assets per the financial statements to the net income (loss) caption of Form 5500 for the year ended December 31:

				2023
Net change in plan assets (a)				$	63,452
Benefits paid -other					2,518
Other					(399	)
Total appreciation of investments per Form 5500				$	65,571

NOTE H – TAX STATUS OF THE PLAN

The Plan has received a determination letter from the IRS dated June 22, 2017, stating that the Plan is qualified under Section 401(a) of the IRC and, therefore, the related trust is exempt from taxation. The Plan is required to operate in conformity with the IRC to maintain its qualification. The Plan Administrator believes the Plan is being operated in compliance with the applicable requirements of the IRC and, therefore, believes the Plan, as amended, is qualified and the related trust is tax exempt.

Accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America require Plan management to evaluate tax positions taken by the Plan and recognize a tax liability (or asset) if the Plan has taken an uncertain position that more likely than not would not be sustained upon examination by the IRS. The Plan Administrator has analyzed the tax positions taken by the Plan, and has concluded that as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, there are no uncertain positions taken or expected to be taken that would require recognition of a liability (or asset) or disclosure in the financial statements. The Plan is subject to routine audits by taxing jurisdictions; however, there are currently no audits for any tax periods in progress. The Plan Administrator believes it is no longer subject to income tax examinations for the plan years ending prior to 2020.

---

NOTE I – RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES

The Plan invests in various investment securities. Investment securities are exposed to various risks such as interest rate, market and credit risks. Due to the level of risk associated with certain investment securities, it is at least reasonably possible that changes in the values of investment securities will occur in the near term and that such changes could materially affect participants’ account balances and the amounts reported in the Statements of Net Assets Available for Benefits.

---

SCHEDULE H

 

Ashland Employee Savings Plan
Employer Identification Number 20-0865835
Plan Number 010
Schedule H; Line 4i - Schedule of Assets (Held at End of Year)
December 31, 2023
($ in thousands)
(a)	(b)		(c)		(d)				(e)
	Identity of Issue		Description of Investment		Cost^				Current Value
*	Participant Loans		1-30 Years, interest 3.25% - 10.50%		$	—			$	9,075
*	Indicates parties-in-interest to the Plan
^	Required for nonparticipant-directed investments only

 

 

See accompanying report of independent registered public accounting firm.

---

SIGNATURE

 

THE PLAN. Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the trustees (or other persons who administer the employee benefit plan) have duly caused this annual report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

	ASHLAND EMPLOYEE SAVINGS PLAN
Date: May 23, 2024	/S/ J. Kevin Willis
	J. Kevin Willis
	Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Chair of the Ashland Inc. Investment and Administrative Oversight Committee

 

---

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

23.1 Consent of Blue & Co., LLC

 

---

EXHIBIT 23.1

 

CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

We consent to the incorporation by reference in the Registration Statement Nos. 33-32612-100, 333-157040-01 and 333-203840-01 on Form S-8 of Ashland Inc. of our report dated May 23, 2024, with respect to the statements of net assets available for benefits of the Ashland Employee Savings Plan as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the related statement of changes in net assets available for benefits for the year ended December 31, 2023, and the related supplemental schedule of Schedule H, line 4i-schedule of assets (held at end of year) as of December 31, 2023, which report appears in the December 31, 2023 annual report on Form 11-K of the Ashland Employee Savings Plan.

 

/S/ Blue and Co.

 

Lexington, Kentucky

May 23, 2024

---