Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC Cuts Stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC reduced its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 154,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,341 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC owned about 0.06% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $13,104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 638 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, United Community Bank boosted its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 925 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. 96.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Flavors & Fragrances Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $75.03 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.00. The company has a market cap of $19.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.82, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.85 and a 1 year high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.08. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. International Flavors & Fragrances’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio is -48.93%.

Insider Activity at International Flavors & Fragrances

In related news, EVP Stephen N. Landsman bought 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $77.28 per share, for a total transaction of $927,360.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $927,360. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kevin O’byrne acquired 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $76.05 per share, with a total value of $342,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,696 shares in the company, valued at $585,280.80. This trade represents a 140.80% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 28,550 shares of company stock valued at $2,211,372 over the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on IFF. Barclays upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America reduced their price objective 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. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $107.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.54.

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.