International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF Shares Sold by OFI Invest Asset Management

Key Points

• OFI Invest Asset Management trimmed its stake in IFF by 16.9%, selling 69,016 shares and leaving 338,973 shares worth about $22.84 million (≈0.13% of the company).
• Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 142,000 shares at about $70.13 each (~$9.96 million), increasing his holding to 2,422,730 shares.
• Analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $89.91; IFF's latest quarter missed EPS ($0.80 vs. $0.85) but beat revenue ($2.59B) and declared a $0.40 quarterly dividend (2.2% yield).

OFI Invest Asset Management trimmed its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 16.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 338,973 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 69,016 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management owned approximately 0.13% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $22,843,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IFF. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 5.3% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 26,315 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,042,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 15.7% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,976 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 71.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,454 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 4,358 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 25.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 7,527 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 587 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IFF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho increased their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Berenberg Bank reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $78.30 to $77.50 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $97.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 142,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $70.13 per share, with a total value of $9,958,460.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,422,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $169,906,054.90. This represents a 6.23% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

NYSE:IFF opened at $73.82 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.86 billion, a PE ratio of -53.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.02. The business's fifty day moving average price is $74.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.85. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 12 month low of $59.14 and a 12 month high of $84.45.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.52 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a negative net margin of 3.20% and a positive return on equity of 7.67%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.97 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, March 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio is -116.79%.

International Flavors & Fragrances Profile

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc NYSE: IFF is a global leader in the creation and production of flavors, fragrances, cosmetic actives and nutritional lipids. The company develops taste and scent solutions for a wide array of end markets including food and beverage, personal care, household goods and pharmaceutical products. Its portfolio spans natural and nature-identical flavors, fine fragrances, functional ingredients for skin and hair care, and specialty oils that enhance nutritional value and sensory appeal.

IFF's research and development network comprises innovation centers in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, where multidisciplinary teams collaborate on aroma chemistry, sensory science and biotechnology.

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