B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Increases Stock Position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,443 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,863 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $1,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,194 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,175,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the third quarter valued at $631,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 3rd quarter worth $994,000. Finally, Centiva Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 3rd quarter worth about $348,000. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on IFF shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Cfra cut International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $101.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.31.

International Flavors & Fragrances Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE IFF opened at $78.66 on Thursday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.73 and a twelve month high of $106.77. The firm has a market cap of $20.12 billion, a PE ratio of 83.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. Analysts expect that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is 170.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kevin O’byrne purchased 6,500 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $80.44 per share, with a total value of $522,860.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $522,860. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

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.