Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Reduces Holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH trimmed its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 11.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 123,696 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 16,093 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances were worth $9,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wahed Invest LLC grew its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 6,339 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank grew its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 4,141 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC grew its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 6,637 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 4,738 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 4,314 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE IFF opened at $76.68 on Friday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.85 and a 12-month high of $106.77. The company has a market capitalization of $19.62 billion, a PE ratio of -23.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $75.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.35.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.08. International Flavors & Fragrances had a negative net margin of 7.31% and a positive return on equity of 7.99%. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is -48.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IFF has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays raised shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Tigress Financial initiated coverage on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $104.00 to $89.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other news, Director Kevin O’byrne acquired 4,500 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $76.05 per share, with a total value of $342,225.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 7,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $585,280.80. This represents a 140.80% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Beril Yildiz sold 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.33, for a total transaction of $185,592.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,321 shares in the company, valued at $256,812.93. The trade was a 41.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 22,050 shares of company stock valued at $1,688,512. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.