International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts assigned a consensus rating of Moderate Buy from 17 firms (12 buys, 4 holds, 1 sell), with an average 1-year price target of $87.50.
• IFF's most recent quarter showed EPS of $0.80 (missed by $0.05) and revenue of $2.59 billion (beat estimates but down 6.6% YoY), with a reported negative net margin of -3.2%.
• Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 142,000 shares at roughly $70.13, and the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share (annualized $1.60, ~2.3% yield).

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.50.

IFF has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $91.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 4th. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

NYSE IFF opened at $70.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -51.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.93. The company's fifty day moving average is $72.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.01. International Flavors & Fragrances has a 52-week low of $59.14 and a 52-week high of $84.45.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a positive return on equity of 7.67% and a negative net margin of 3.20%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that International Flavors & Fragrances will post 4.42 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 18th. International Flavors & Fragrances's payout ratio is -116.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 142,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $70.13 per share, for a total transaction of $9,958,460.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,422,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $169,906,054.90. The trade was a 6.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Flavors & Fragrances

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dodge & Cox boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 5.5% in the third quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 36,972,638 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,275,296,000 after buying an additional 1,925,251 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,133,186 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,915,936,000 after buying an additional 252,983 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,092,368 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $751,875,000 after buying an additional 121,260 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 8,831,668 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $595,166,000 after buying an additional 1,904,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,519,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $506,760,000 after buying an additional 352,636 shares in the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc NYSE: IFF is a global leader in the creation and production of flavors, fragrances, cosmetic actives and nutritional lipids. The company develops taste and scent solutions for a wide array of end markets including food and beverage, personal care, household goods and pharmaceutical products. Its portfolio spans natural and nature-identical flavors, fine fragrances, functional ingredients for skin and hair care, and specialty oils that enhance nutritional value and sensory appeal.

IFF's research and development network comprises innovation centers in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, where multidisciplinary teams collaborate on aroma chemistry, sensory science and biotechnology.

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