Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC Purchases New Shares in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,904 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $415,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA boosted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.1% in 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 lifted its position in shares of 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 during the period. 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 purchasing an additional 54,340 shares in the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the fourth quarter worth $7,508,000. Finally, S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC raised its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 372.9% in 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. Institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

NYSE:IFF opened at $79.12 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $76.86 and its 200-day moving average is $84.21. The stock has a market cap of $20.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.08. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.85 and a 1-year high of $106.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.12% and a return on equity of 7.72%. Equities research analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is presently 170.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kevin O’byrne bought 6,500 shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $80.44 per share, for a total transaction of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $522,860. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $99.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $105.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Cfra cut International Flavors & Fragrances from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $77.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on 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 investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.54.

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.