Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT) Shares Bought by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) by 29.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 43,534 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,817 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.10% of Sensient Technologies worth $3,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in Sensient Technologies by 13.6% in 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 purchasing an additional 6,624 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Sensient Technologies in the first quarter valued at about $224,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Sensient Technologies by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 185,490 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,218,000 after purchasing an additional 7,148 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Sensient Technologies by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 62,002 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,418,000 after purchasing an additional 3,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Sensient Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at about $556,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.86% of the company's stock.

Sensient Technologies Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of SXT stock traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $108.96. 119,749 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 247,889. Sensient Technologies Corporation has a 1 year low of $66.15 and a 1 year high of $111.11. The stock has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a PE ratio of 36.11 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 4.34, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $96.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.83.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.04. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 12.14% and a net margin of 8.19%. The business had revenue of $392.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $387.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. 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 paid 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 1.51%. Sensient Technologies's payout ratio is 54.30%.

Insider Activity at Sensient Technologies

In related news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of Sensient Technologies stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total transaction of $159,210.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $758,445.70. The trade was a 17.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. CJS Securities assumed coverage on Sensient Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Sensient Technologies from $93.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd.

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.