187,320 International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF Shares Sold by Argent Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management cut its IFF stake by 84.5% in the third quarter, selling 187,320 shares and retaining 34,248 shares. Institutional investors still own approximately 96% of the company.
• IFF shares rose 1.2% to $83.43, while the company’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with earnings of $0.82 per share versus the $1.07 consensus and revenue of $1.95 billion versus $2.62 billion expected.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share and authorized a $2.5 billion share-repurchase program. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $91.40.

Argent Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 84.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,248 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 187,320 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC's holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $2,859,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 97.9% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 554 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 27.9% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 706 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp purchased a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 2nd quarter valued at $91,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt bought a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter worth $148,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the second quarter valued at about $157,000. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of IFF stock traded up $1.01 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $83.43. 356,950 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,801,824. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1 year low of $59.14 and a 1 year high of $89.32. The firm has a market cap of $21.29 billion, a PE ratio of 76.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.91. The company's 50 day moving average is $84.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.04.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.62 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.11% and a net margin of 2.78%.International Flavors & Fragrances's revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Friday, September 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. International Flavors & Fragrances's payout ratio is presently 146.79%.

International Flavors & Fragrances declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, August 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 12.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on IFF. Barclays raised their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Zacks Research raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Marc Birenkrant sold 1,000 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $85,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $292,910. This trade represents a 22.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider De Mendonca Ana Paula Teles sold 5,718 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was 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 quarter, insiders have sold 15,543 shares of company stock worth $1,315,659. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

International Flavors & Fragrances 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.

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