Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Has $794,000 Holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,569 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 667 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 1,856.0% in the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 489 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on IFF. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $107.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Vertical Research raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $109.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $109.27.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

IFF stock opened at $86.14 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 2.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.43. The company has a market capitalization of $22.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.22. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.89 and a 52-week high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.46). International Flavors & Fragrances had a positive return on equity of 7.16% and a negative net margin of 20.33%. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio is currently -17.60%.

Insider Transactions at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other news, insider Yuvraj Arora sold 5,000 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.75, for a total transaction of $458,750.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,238 shares in the company, valued at $297,086.50. The trade was a 60.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cosmetic active and natural health ingredients for use in various consumer products in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent, and Pharma Solutions.