Pacer Advisors Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 50%, now owning 15,591 shares valued at approximately $1.21 million.
• Several hedge funds increased their stakes in the company, with notable purchases including Freemont Capital Pte Ltd acquiring a new position worth over $2.14 billion.
• International Flavors & Fragrances has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 2.23%.

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 50.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,591 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 15,566 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $1,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of IFF. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 84,265 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $6,525,000 after purchasing an additional 8,490 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,271,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 361,073 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $30,529,000 after purchasing an additional 68,970 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the 1st quarter worth approximately $688,000. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 126.1% during the 1st quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 29,344 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,277,000 after purchasing an additional 16,368 shares in the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

NYSE:IFF traded down $1.56 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $69.47. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,489,182 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,557,884. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.00. The company has a market capitalization of $17.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.24, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.39. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.85 and a twelve month high of $106.77.

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 (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 29th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 29th. International Flavors & Fragrances's payout ratio is presently -48.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, EVP Stephen N. Landsman bought 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $77.28 per share, for a total transaction of $927,360.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $927,360. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Beril Yildiz sold 2,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.33, for a total value of $185,592.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $256,812.93. This trade represents a 41.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 22,050 shares of company stock valued at $1,688,512 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IFF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho dropped their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Tigress Financial started coverage on International Flavors & Fragrances in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup increased their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.