DnB Asset Management AS Acquires 266,392 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 72.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 635,598 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 266,392 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $53,740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in IFF. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA increased its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.1% during the fourth 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 during the period. Choreo LLC boosted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 24,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,055,000 after acquiring an additional 8,728 shares in the last quarter. Covea Finance grew its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 79.0% during the 4th quarter. Covea Finance now owns 123,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,407,000 after acquiring an additional 54,340 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,508,000. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IFF opened at $78.25 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $90.16. 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 firm has a market cap of $20.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.63 and a fifty-two week high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last issued 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 company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. On average, analysts expect 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, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio is 170.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, Director Kevin O’byrne acquired 6,500 shares of the company’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 acquisition, the director now owns 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $522,860. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on IFF shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $83.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Cfra cut shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective 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. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $114.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.31.

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.