International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $89.46 and last traded at $89.5890, with a volume of 1,037,786 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $88.20.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IFF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 19th. Vertical Research cut shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $93.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, August 6th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Argus lifted their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.69.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $23.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.75, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.10.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.25). International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.11% and a net margin of 2.78%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 18th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio is 146.79%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other news, EVP Michael Deveau sold 8,825 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 5,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $444,774.45. The trade was a 62.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider De Mendonca Ana Paula Teles sold 5,718 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.19, for a total value of $475,680.42. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,543 shares of company stock worth $1,315,659. 1.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Flavors & Fragrances

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IFF. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in 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 worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 27.9% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 706 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter valued at about $91,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 24.0% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,393 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the second quarter worth about $148,000. Institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc (NYSE:IFF) develops and manufactures ingredients and solutions used in food, beverages, personal care products, fragrances, household products, pharmaceuticals and other consumer goods. The company works with manufacturers to create flavors, fragrances, functional ingredients and sensory experiences for products sold under consumer brands.

IFF’s portfolio includes natural and synthetic flavor compounds, fragrance ingredients, specialty ingredients, food texturants, enzymes, cultures, probiotics and pharmaceutical excipients.