Northern Trust Corp Increases Stock Position in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Free Report) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 569,652 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 52,654 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.34% of Sensient Technologies worth $40,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,064,724 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $360,912,000 after acquiring an additional 36,406 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,223,728 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $87,203,000 after buying an additional 26,119 shares in the last quarter. Snyder Capital Management L P increased its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Snyder Capital Management L P now owns 667,175 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $47,543,000 after buying an additional 48,146 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,757,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 601,033 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $42,830,000 after acquiring an additional 10,884 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on SXT shares. Robert W. Baird boosted 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sensient Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 22nd.

Sensient Technologies Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of SXT opened at $95.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.56 and a beta of 0.58. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 12 month low of $66.15 and a 12 month high of $96.48. The stock's 50-day moving average is $78.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

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

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. Sensient Technologies's payout ratio is currently 54.30%.

About Sensient Technologies

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.

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