Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 434 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 195,342 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 434 shares during the quarter. International Flavors & Fragrances accounts for 2.4% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $16,516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of IFF. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 36.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 638 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Kevin O’byrne bought 6,500 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.44 per share, for a total transaction of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $522,860. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on IFF. Cfra downgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Argus raised shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.50.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Down 0.2 %

International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $80.62 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.62 billion, a PE ratio of 85.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a twelve month low of $78.91 and a twelve month high of $106.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a 50 day moving average of $83.35 and a 200-day moving average of $91.13.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.14. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is 170.21%.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

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.