Cetera Investment Advisers Sells 4,772 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Key Points

• Cetera Investment Advisers has reduced its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. by 17.7%, selling 4,772 shares, which leaves them with 22,198 shares valued at approximately $1.72 million.
• Insiders, including Director Kevin O'byrne and EVP Stephen N. Landsman, have made significant purchases of IFF stock, acquiring a combined total of 16,500 shares worth over $1.26 million.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.5% scheduled for payment on October 10th.

Cetera Investment Advisers lessened its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 17.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 22,198 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,772 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $1,723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 179.9% during the 1st quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 655 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 1st quarter worth about $77,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter worth about $78,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 48.5% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,534 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 1st quarter worth about $138,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.02% of the company's stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Up 1.7%

IFF stock traded up $1.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $64.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,477,548 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,802,073. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -41.63, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.04. The company's fifty day moving average price is $74.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.11. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.33 and a twelve month high of $106.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a negative net margin of 3.48% and a positive return on equity of 7.95%. International Flavors & Fragrances's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.16 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 29th. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio is -103.23%.

Insider Activity at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other news, Director Kevin O'byrne purchased 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $76.05 per share, with a total value of $342,225.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 7,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $585,280.80. The trade was a 140.80% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 15,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $64.80 per share, with a total value of $1,001,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,450 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,160. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 52,100 shares of company stock worth $3,631,607 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on IFF. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $92.36.

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.