SXT vs. IFF, RPM, ALB, NEU, BCPC, CE, FUL, KWR, ASH, and IOSP
Should you be buying Sensient Technologies stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of Sensient Technologies include International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), RPM International (RPM), Albemarle (ALB), NewMarket (NEU), Balchem (BCPC), Celanese (CE), H. B. Fuller (FUL), Quaker Houghton (KWR), Ashland (ASH), and Innospec (IOSP). These companies are all part of the "specialty chemicals" industry.
Sensient Technologies vs. Its Competitors
Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) and International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, media sentiment and valuation.
Sensient Technologies pays an annual dividend of $1.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. International Flavors & Fragrances pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Sensient Technologies pays out 51.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. International Flavors & Fragrances pays out -103.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. International Flavors & Fragrances is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
90.9% of Sensient Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.0% of International Flavors & Fragrances shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Sensient Technologies shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of International Flavors & Fragrances shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Sensient Technologies presently has a consensus target price of $110.00, suggesting a potential upside of 15.78%. International Flavors & Fragrances has a consensus target price of $90.25, suggesting a potential upside of 45.21%. Given International Flavors & Fragrances' higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe International Flavors & Fragrances is more favorable than Sensient Technologies.
Sensient Technologies has a beta of 0.56, meaning that its stock price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, International Flavors & Fragrances has a beta of 1.07, meaning that its stock price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Sensient Technologies has a net margin of 8.56% compared to International Flavors & Fragrances' net margin of -3.48%. Sensient Technologies' return on equity of 12.56% beat International Flavors & Fragrances' return on equity.
International Flavors & Fragrances has higher revenue and earnings than Sensient Technologies. International Flavors & Fragrances is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Sensient Technologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
In the previous week, International Flavors & Fragrances had 16 more articles in the media than Sensient Technologies. MarketBeat recorded 18 mentions for International Flavors & Fragrances and 2 mentions for Sensient Technologies. Sensient Technologies' average media sentiment score of 1.05 beat International Flavors & Fragrances' score of 0.19 indicating that Sensient Technologies is being referred to more favorably in the media.
Summary
Sensient Technologies and International Flavors & Fragrances tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time
This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding SXT and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over Time
This chart shows the average media sentiment of NYSE and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
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This page (NYSE:SXT) was last updated on 10/4/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff