Quantinno Capital Management LP Takes $205,000 Position in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Quantinno Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,876 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SXT. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 18,766.7% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 566 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 49.4% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 920 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. 90.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sensient Technologies Price Performance

SXT stock remained flat at $94.37 during trading on Thursday. 326,699 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 222,966. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.51. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1 year low of $66.15 and a 1 year high of $98.27. The company has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 32.10 and a beta of 0.58.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $392.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $387.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.73 EPS. Sensient Technologies's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Sensient Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sensient Technologies news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of Sensient Technologies stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total transaction of $159,210.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $758,445.70. The trade was a 17.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective 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.

Sensient Technologies Company 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.