International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• International Flavors & Fragrances shares reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $95.27 and closing near $94.84. Analysts’ overall consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with a $94.28 average price target.
• The company’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, reporting $0.82 in EPS versus a $1.07 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.95 billion versus $2.62 billion expected.
• IFF declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, representing a 1.7% yield, and authorized a $2.5 billion share-repurchase program covering up to 12.1% of outstanding shares.

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $95.27 and last traded at $94.84, with a volume of 669,424 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $93.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on IFF. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, October 25th. Citigroup dropped their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $101.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Vertical Research lowered International Flavors & Fragrances from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $93.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $96.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Zacks Research raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.28.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.06.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.11%. The business's revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, December 19th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 146.79%.

International Flavors & Fragrances announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 12.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, CAO Marc Birenkrant sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $85,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,446 shares in the company, valued at $292,910. This trade represents a 22.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Deveau sold 8,825 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.55, for a total value of $754,978.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $444,774.45. This trade represents a 62.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,543 shares of company stock worth $1,315,659. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Flavors & Fragrances

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,835,955,000. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $223,065,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $131,760,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,809,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $131,222,000 after purchasing an additional 147,896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter valued at $122,792,000. 96.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc NYSE: IFF develops and manufactures ingredients, flavor systems, fragrances and specialty solutions used in consumer and industrial products. Its offerings support food and beverage manufacturers, fragrance and personal care companies, household-product makers, pharmaceutical businesses and other customers.

The company's portfolio includes flavors for beverages, dairy products, sweet goods, savory foods and other applications; fragrances for fine fragrance, personal care and home care products; and functional ingredients, enzymes, cultures, natural extracts and other specialty materials.

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