Ethic Inc. Sells 4,763 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Ethic Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,045 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,763 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $3,555,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IFF. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter worth about $452,363,000. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 31,437,763 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,658,063,000 after buying an additional 3,355,381 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 41.6% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,664,250 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $478,912,000 after buying an additional 1,663,629 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,407,262 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $288,084,000 after acquiring an additional 565,769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albar Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,329,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Down 0.8 %

International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $73.46 on Friday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.85 and a 12 month high of $106.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $18.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 78.15, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.08.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. Equities analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio is currently -48.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $107.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $104.00 to $89.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kevin O’byrne bought 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $80.44 per share, with a total value of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $522,860. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO J Erik Fyrwald purchased 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $74.00 per share, with a total value of $51,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 37,770 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,794,980. This trade represents a 1.89 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc engages in the manufacture and supply of flavors and fragrances used in the food, beverage, personal care, and household products industries. It operates through the following segments: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent and Pharma Solutions. The Nourish segment consists of legacy Taste segment combined with N&B’s Food & Beverage division and the food protection business of N&B’s Health & Biosciences division.