Are the Ash'aris among the misguided, deviant sects?

The Ash'aris are a group attributed to Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari, who went through three stages: Mu'tazilism, then following Ibn Kullab, then conforming to the Sunnis. So, whoever followed al-Ash'ari in the third stage has conformed to the Sunnis in most of their tenets. But whoever adhered to his method in the second stage has contradicted al-Ash'ari himself and the Sunnis.