Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT) Shares Sold by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. has reduced its stake in Sensient Technologies by 6.2%, now owning approximately 0.19% of the company worth about $5.98 million.
• Recent quarterly earnings showed Sensient Technologies reported $0.94 EPS, surpassing expectations, with a 2.7% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.41 per share, yielding 1.44%, with a payout ratio of 54.30%.

Heartland Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 80,379 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 5,355 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 0.19% of Sensient Technologies worth $5,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SXT. Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,017 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 83.7% in the fourth quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 7,822 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $557,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,771 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $483,000 after purchasing an additional 2,515 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $556,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,064,724 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $360,912,000 after purchasing an additional 36,406 shares during the last quarter. 90.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. CJS Securities assumed coverage on Sensient Technologies in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Sensient Technologies from $93.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total transaction of $159,210.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Sensient Technologies Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of SXT traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $112.81. 490,084 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 353,502. Sensient Technologies Corporation has a 1-year low of $66.14 and a 1-year high of $114.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 4.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of 35.59 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50 day moving average of $100.91 and a 200 day moving average of $85.48.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.06. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 8.56%. The business had revenue of $414.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $417.60 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Sensient Technologies Corporation will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 4th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. Sensient Technologies's payout ratio is currently 54.30%.

About Sensient Technologies

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.