Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Sensient Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of SXT stock opened at $73.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 3.55. Sensient Technologies has a 52 week low of $66.15 and a 52 week high of $82.99. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $73.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.96 and a beta of 0.71.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $376.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 period last year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Sensient Technologies will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Sensient Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 55.78%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sensient Technologies

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 66.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 58,643 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,704,000 after purchasing an additional 23,474 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Sensient Technologies by 135.8% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 23,059 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,850,000 after buying an additional 13,279 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sensient Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at $471,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Sensient Technologies by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 590,149 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $47,342,000 after buying an additional 7,235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 86,390 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,874,000 after buying an additional 1,909 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.86% of the company’s stock.

About Sensient Technologies

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.