Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC Sells 81,027 Shares of Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT)

Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) by 22.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 273,037 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 81,027 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC owned 0.64% of Sensient Technologies worth $20,322,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 132.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 435 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 2.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 220,906 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $16,442,000 after acquiring an additional 5,011 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 55,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,954,000 after acquiring an additional 6,624 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies during the first quarter valued at $224,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 185,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,218,000 after acquiring an additional 7,148 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.86% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total transaction of $159,210.60. Following the sale, the director owned 7,946 shares in the company, valued at $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 is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SXT has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Sensient Technologies from $93.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Finally, CJS Securities initiated coverage on Sensient Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $95.00 target price for the company.

Sensient Technologies Stock Performance

SXT traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $109.42. The stock had a trading volume of 55,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,308. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $98.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.34. The firm has a market cap of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.26 and a beta of 0.56. Sensient Technologies Corporation has a one year low of $66.15 and a one year high of $111.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 4.34 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 12.14% and a net margin of 8.19%. The firm had revenue of $392.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $387.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.73 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Sensient Technologies Corporation will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Sensient Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.