International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF Stock Position Reduced by Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Kettle Hill Capital Management cut its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 67.1% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 139,803 shares worth about $9.4 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains very high, with institutions holding 96.02% of IFF shares. Several other hedge funds increased their positions during the same period.
• Analysts remain constructive on IFF: the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.05. The company also posted quarterly EPS and revenue above expectations and declared a $0.40 quarterly dividend.

Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 67.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 139,803 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 284,944 shares during the period. International Flavors & Fragrances accounts for 2.1% of Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $9,421,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 21,721 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 5,901 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,249 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,162,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 116.0% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 59,158 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,987,000 after purchasing an additional 31,764 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 188.3% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 37,828 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,552,000 after purchasing an additional 24,709 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 1,971.2% in the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 210,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $14,160,000 after purchasing an additional 199,978 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.02% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IFF has been the topic of several recent research reports. Benchmark started coverage on International Flavors & Fragrances in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Berenberg Bank lifted their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $83.00 to $84.80 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $75.00 to $86.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.05.

Insider Activity at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 260,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $74.28 per share, with a total value of $19,312,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,682,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,273,184.40. This represents a 10.73% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE IFF opened at $78.32 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.95, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $74.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.43. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52-week low of $59.14 and a 52-week high of $84.45.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.64 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 7.78%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.20 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 18th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 18th. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.93%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding IFF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.