National Pension Service Has $29.22 Million Stock Position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF)

National Pension Service decreased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF - Free Report) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 345,631 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 26,228 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.14% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $29,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in International Flavors & Fragrances during the third quarter worth $42,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 638 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the third quarter valued at about $67,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances during the fourth quarter worth about $78,000. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on IFF shares. Argus raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $113.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Vertical Research raised shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $109.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 report on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.50.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

IFF traded up $1.53 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $81.32. The stock had a trading volume of 1,605,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,466,214. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $83.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.62. 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 has a market capitalization of $20.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.31 and a 1-year high of $106.77.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 2.12%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

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.