International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,354,754 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 778,432 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.85% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $2,045,607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 51,197 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,450,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 15,238 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,027,000 after acquiring an additional 1,161 shares during the period. Ruffer LLP grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Ruffer LLP now owns 237,473 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $16,028,000 after acquiring an additional 17,263 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 249,880 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $16,908,000 after acquiring an additional 7,619 shares during the period. Finally, Optas LLC acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth about $227,000. 96.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 142,000 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $70.13 per share, for a total transaction of $9,958,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,422,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $169,906,054.90. This trade represents a 6.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $68.82 on Thursday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a one year low of $59.14 and a one year high of $84.45. The company has a market cap of $17.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -50.23, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.42. The business's 50 day moving average price is $73.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.94.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.05). International Flavors & Fragrances had a positive return on equity of 7.67% and a negative net margin of 3.20%.The company had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.42 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -116.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup dropped their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 13th. Argus raised their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays decreased their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $91.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Berenberg Bank dropped their price target on shares of 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. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Flavors & Fragrances presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $87.50.

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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