The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 6,695 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 144,298 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 6,695 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.06% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $12,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA boosted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 114,179 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $9,654,000 after acquiring an additional 11,406 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 24,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,055,000 after purchasing an additional 8,728 shares during the last quarter. Covea Finance lifted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 79.0% in the 4th quarter. Covea Finance now owns 123,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $10,407,000 after buying an additional 54,340 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,508,000. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 372.9% in the fourth quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 63,104 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,335,000 after acquiring an additional 49,761 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.02% of the company's stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of IFF traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $74.11. 2,448,015 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,519,114. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company's 50-day moving average price is $76.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $84.10. The company has a market cap of $18.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.08. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.85 and a 52-week high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.08. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 170.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Kevin O'byrne purchased 6,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $80.44 per share, with a total value of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $522,860. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $104.00 to $89.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $101.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Flavors & Fragrances currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.69.

International Flavors & Fragrances 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.