Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) Shares Bought by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) by 10.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 569,652 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 52,654 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.34% of Sensient Technologies worth $40,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 309.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 77,260 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $6,197,000 after buying an additional 58,386 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Sensient Technologies by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,938 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $8,017,000 after purchasing an additional 18,235 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,334 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,164,000 after buying an additional 3,298 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Sensient Technologies by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,617 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares during the period. 90.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Sensient Technologies news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,668 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.45, for a total value of $159,210.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $758,445.70. This represents a 17.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Sensient Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE SXT traded up $2.00 on Thursday, hitting $93.83. 39,937 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 333,681. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $79.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 31.92 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 3.55, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1-year low of $66.14 and a 1-year high of $98.27.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $392.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $387.70 million. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 11.93% and a net margin of 8.01%. Sensient Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Sensient Technologies's payout ratio is currently 54.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on SXT. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 22nd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Sensient Technologies from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th.

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.