Blue Trust Inc. Grows Position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 6.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter valued at about $694,000. Czech National Bank increased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 52,080 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,465,000 after acquiring an additional 3,421 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 7.5% during the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 7,020 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $737,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 15.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,016 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 109.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 597 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IFF opened at $87.07 on Monday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.94 and a twelve month high of $106.77. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $86.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.79. The company has a market capitalization of $22.26 billion, a PE ratio of -9.58, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.46). International Flavors & Fragrances had a negative net margin of 20.33% and a positive return on equity of 7.16%. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, insider Yuvraj Arora sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.75, for a total transaction of $458,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $297,086.50. This trade represents a 60.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on IFF. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Argus raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $109.00.

International Flavors & Fragrances 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.