Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 16.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,561 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 11,406 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC boosted its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 24,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,055,000 after acquiring an additional 8,728 shares in the last quarter. Covea Finance grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 79.0% in the fourth quarter. Covea Finance now owns 123,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,407,000 after purchasing an additional 54,340 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the fourth quarter worth about $7,508,000. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 372.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 49,761 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $73.01 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $81.66 and its 200 day moving average is $88.84. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a one year low of $72.82 and a one year high of $106.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 1.84. The stock has a market cap of $18.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. Sell-side 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 170.21%.

Insider Activity

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Kevin O’byrne purchased 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.44 per share, for a total transaction of $522,860.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $522,860. This represents a ? increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Argus upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $114.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $107.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.31.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company 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.