Portside Wealth Group LLC Buys Shares of 3,767 Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Portside Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,767 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $280,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in SXT. Freemont Capital Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $449,288,000. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,984,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,757,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $24,490,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Sensient Technologies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,270,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SXT shares. CJS Securities started coverage on Sensient Technologies in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Sensient Technologies from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total value of $159,210.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $758,445.70. This represents a 17.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Sensient Technologies Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:SXT traded down $1.35 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.09. The company had a trading volume of 213,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 225,464. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 3.55. The firm has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.34 and a beta of 0.56. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1-year low of $66.15 and a 1-year high of $98.27.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 11.93%. The business had revenue of $392.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $387.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.73 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Sensient Technologies's payout ratio is 54.30%.

Sensient Technologies Profile

Sensient Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets colors, flavors, and other specialty ingredients in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and Africa. The company offers flavor-delivery systems, and compounded and blended products; ingredient products, such as essential oils, natural and synthetic flavors, and natural extracts; and chili powder, paprika, and chili pepper, as well as dehydrated vegetables comprising parsley, celery, and spinach to the food, beverage, and personal care industries.