Magnetar Financial LLC Acquires Shares of 7,464 Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 7,464 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $532,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SXT. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Sensient Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 18,766.7% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 566 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 152.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 77.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 779 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.86% of the company’s stock.

Sensient Technologies Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE SXT opened at $72.75 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.17. The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.74 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1 year low of $66.15 and a 1 year high of $82.99.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $376.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $375.10 million. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 11.93%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Sensient Technologies’s payout ratio is currently 55.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sensient Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday.

Sensient Technologies Profile

Sensient Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets colors, flavors, and other specialty ingredients in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and Africa. The company offers flavor-delivery systems, and compounded and blended products; ingredient products, such as essential oils, natural and synthetic flavors, and natural extracts; and chili powder, paprika, and chili pepper, as well as dehydrated vegetables comprising parsley, celery, and spinach to the food, beverage, and personal care industries.