Franklin Resources Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Inter Parfums, Inc. (NASDAQ:IPAR)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Inter Parfums, Inc. (NASDAQ:IPAR - Free Report) by 34.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,798 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,813 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Inter Parfums were worth $1,946,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of IPAR. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Inter Parfums by 55.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 226 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. SRH Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Inter Parfums by 791.7% during the 4th quarter. SRH Advisors LLC now owns 535 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Inter Parfums by 25.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the company's stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Inter Parfums by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,323 shares of the company's stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Inter Parfums by 23.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. 55.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. BWS Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $172.00 price objective on shares of Inter Parfums in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Inter Parfums from $158.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Inter Parfums in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $162.80.

Inter Parfums Price Performance

IPAR stock traded up $1.57 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $104.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 132,740 shares, compared to its average volume of 174,406. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Inter Parfums, Inc. has a 12 month low of $97.65 and a 12 month high of $148.15. The company has a 50 day moving average of $122.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.32 and a beta of 1.15.

Inter Parfums (NASDAQ:IPAR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.05). Inter Parfums had a net margin of 10.60% and a return on equity of 16.34%. The company had revenue of $361.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $361.56 million. On average, analysts expect that Inter Parfums, Inc. will post 5.14 EPS for the current year.

Inter Parfums Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. This is a boost from Inter Parfums's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Inter Parfums's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.87%.

About Inter Parfums

Inter Parfums, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of fragrances and fragrance related products in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, European Based Operations and United States Based Operations. The company offers its fragrance and cosmetic products under the Boucheron, Coach, Jimmy Choo, Karl Lagerfeld, Kate Spade, Lanvin, Moncler, Montblanc, Rochas, S.T.