Guggenheim Capital LLC Has $753,000 Stock Holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Guggenheim Capital LLC cut its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 32.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,907 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,186 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $753,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of IFF. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 638 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 4th quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.02% of the company's stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Up 1.2 %

IFF stock traded up $0.91 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $78.46. The company had a trading volume of 1,829,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,533,841. The company has a market capitalization of $20.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.47, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.85 and a 52 week high of $106.77. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.93.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. As a group, equities analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 170.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kevin O'byrne purchased 6,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $80.44 per share, for a total transaction of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $522,860. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IFF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $99.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $104.00 to $89.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $107.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.54.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc engages in the manufacture and supply of flavors and fragrances used in the food, beverage, personal care, and household products industries. It operates through the following segments: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent and Pharma Solutions. The Nourish segment consists of legacy Taste segment combined with N&B's Food & Beverage division and the food protection business of N&B's Health & Biosciences division.