Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA reduced its position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 18.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,683,428 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 818,468 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 1.44% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $285,871,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Freemont Capital Pte Ltd bought a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,143,882,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth $452,363,000. Dodge & Cox increased its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 31,437,763 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,658,063,000 after purchasing an additional 3,355,381 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,407,262 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $288,084,000 after purchasing an additional 565,769 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 6,831.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 556,464 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $431,870,000 after purchasing an additional 548,436 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Hernandez Margarita Palau acquired 850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $77.42 per share, with a total value of $65,807.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,393 shares in the company, valued at $185,266.06. The trade was a 55.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin O'byrne purchased 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $76.05 per share, for a total transaction of $342,225.00. Following the purchase, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 22,050 shares of company stock worth $1,688,512 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

Shares of IFF stock traded up $0.63 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $74.28. 1,065,741 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,535,943. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.85 and a 52-week high of $106.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.04.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.08. International Flavors & Fragrances had a positive return on equity of 7.99% and a negative net margin of 7.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances's payout ratio is presently -48.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Tigress Financial started coverage on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $93.43.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

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.