Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 4,051 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Sensient Technologies by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,938 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $8,017,000 after buying an additional 18,235 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in Sensient Technologies by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 55,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,954,000 after buying an additional 6,624 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 185,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $13,218,000 after purchasing an additional 7,148 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 215,895 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $15,385,000 after purchasing an additional 6,984 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 34.3% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 24,449 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,742,000 after purchasing an additional 6,247 shares in the last quarter. 90.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on SXT shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Sensient Technologies from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. StockNews.com lowered Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sensient Technologies

In other Sensient Technologies news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total transaction of $159,210.60. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,946 shares in the company, valued at $758,445.70. This represents a 17.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sensient Technologies Stock Down 0.1%

SXT traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $94.41. 345,431 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 220,761. The company has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.11 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 3.55. The company's fifty day moving average price is $80.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.49. Sensient Technologies Co. has a one year low of $66.15 and a one year high of $98.27.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 11.93% and a net margin of 8.01%. The company had revenue of $392.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $387.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. Sensient Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Sensient Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.30%.

Sensient Technologies Company Profile

Sensient Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets colors, flavors, and other specialty ingredients in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and Africa. The company offers flavor-delivery systems, and compounded and blended products; ingredient products, such as essential oils, natural and synthetic flavors, and natural extracts; and chili powder, paprika, and chili pepper, as well as dehydrated vegetables comprising parsley, celery, and spinach to the food, beverage, and personal care industries.