International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System reduced its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 433,071 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 20,260 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $36,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 114,179 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,654,000 after acquiring an additional 11,406 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 24,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,055,000 after purchasing an additional 8,728 shares during the period. Covea Finance increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 79.0% during the 4th quarter. Covea Finance now owns 123,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $10,407,000 after purchasing an additional 54,340 shares in the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter valued at $7,508,000. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 372.9% during the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 63,104 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,335,000 after buying an additional 49,761 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Trading Up 1.6 %

IFF opened at $78.66 on Thursday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.73 and a 1-year high of $106.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $82.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $89.35.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last posted its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. Analysts expect that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 170.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $114.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Citigroup reduced their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kevin O’byrne bought 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $80.44 per share, with a total value of $522,860.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.20% of the stock is 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.