International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Upgraded to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Posted by Stanley Muller on Sep 23rd, 2026

Zacks Research upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF – Free Report) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday,Zacks reports.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on IFF. Benchmark increased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Argus upped their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup lowered their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $96.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. KeyCorp started coverage on International Flavors & Fragrances in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They set a “sector weight” rating for the company. Finally, Vertical Research lowered shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $93.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.40.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

IFF stock opened at $85.83 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $21.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.75, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.31. International Flavors & Fragrances has a twelve month low of $59.14 and a twelve month high of $89.32.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by ($0.25). International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.11%. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 4th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 12.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 18th. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is currently 146.79%.

Insider Transactions at International Flavors & Fragrances

In related news, EVP Michael Deveau sold 8,825 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.55, for a total transaction of $754,978.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $444,774.45. This represents a 62.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Marc Birenkrant sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $85,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,910. This trade represents a 22.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,543 shares of company stock valued at $1,315,659. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Flavors & Fragrances

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 97.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 554 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 27.9% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 706 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp purchased a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the second quarter valued at approximately $91,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 575.8% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,622 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,382 shares during the period. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter worth approximately $148,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

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International Flavors & Fragrances Inc (NYSE:IFF) develops and manufactures ingredients, flavor systems, fragrances and related solutions used in consumer and industrial products. Its offerings help customers create or enhance the taste, aroma, texture, appearance and performance of products across the food, beverage, personal care, home care, health and pharmaceutical markets.

IFF’s business includes natural and synthetic flavor compounds, fragrance ingredients and compositions, cosmetic and personal-care ingredients, specialty food ingredients, enzymes, cultures, probiotics and other bioscience-based solutions.