Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Acquires 47,900 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 288,900 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 47,900 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.11% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $24,426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $104.00 to $89.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Cfra cut International Flavors & Fragrances from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $77.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Barclays reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $82.00 to $76.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup cut their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $99.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Argus raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $94.54.

Insider Transactions at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Kevin O'byrne bought 6,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $80.44 per share, with a total value of $522,860.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $522,860. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

NYSE:IFF traded down $0.65 on Thursday, hitting $77.82. The stock had a trading volume of 875,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,531,353. The stock has a market cap of $19.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $76.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.05. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.85 and a 52-week high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share (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 analysts' expectations of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. As a group, research analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 170.21%.

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.