International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Hits New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $75.61 and last traded at $75.00, with a volume of 2096 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $76.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on IFF shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Argus upgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Cfra cut International Flavors & Fragrances from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $77.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $83.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.69.

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International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Up 7.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm's fifty day moving average is $80.54 and its 200-day moving average is $88.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.42 billion, a PE ratio of 76.88, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21.

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

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. International Flavors & Fragrances's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 170.21%.

Insider Transactions at International Flavors & Fragrances

In other news, Director Kevin O'byrne purchased 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.44 per share, for a total transaction of $522,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $522,860. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Centiva Capital LP bought a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the 3rd quarter valued at about $348,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 59.7% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 12,093 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,269,000 after buying an additional 4,519 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 62.8% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 156,318 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $16,402,000 after acquiring an additional 60,288 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,990,000. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 6.4% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 76,872 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $8,066,000 after buying an additional 4,642 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.02% of the company's stock.

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.