Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 80,115 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 474,685 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 80,115 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.19% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $45,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in IFF. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,756,438 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $167,244,000 after buying an additional 123,693 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,384 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,655,000 after acquiring an additional 2,174 shares during the period. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management raised its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 34,829 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,316,000 after acquiring an additional 1,791 shares during the last quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 195,528 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,659 shares during the period. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter worth $204,000. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of IFF opened at $104.22 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $93.08. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.28 and a 1-year high of $105.30. The company has a market cap of $26.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.67, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.22.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.15. International Flavors & Fragrances had a negative net margin of 20.82% and a positive return on equity of 6.63%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 EPS. International Flavors & Fragrances’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 9th. Investors of record on Friday, September 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 20th. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -16.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on IFF shares. Citigroup increased their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $108.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Mizuho upgraded shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $109.00 to $120.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $102.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.87.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

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.