Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) Short Interest Up 18.2% in December

Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 620,100 shares, an increase of 18.2% from the November 30th total of 524,700 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 146,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sensient Technologies

In other news, insider Michael C. Geraghty sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.48, for a total value of $321,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,938,968.64. This represents a 9.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its position in Sensient Technologies by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,694,114 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $135,902,000 after purchasing an additional 60,622 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 309.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 77,260 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $6,197,000 after acquiring an additional 58,386 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Sensient Technologies in the second quarter valued at $4,218,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Sensient Technologies by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,208,815 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $89,683,000 after purchasing an additional 39,290 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Sensient Technologies by 565.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 40,447 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,001,000 after purchasing an additional 34,367 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.86% of the company's stock.

Sensient Technologies Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of SXT stock traded down $1.18 on Monday, hitting $71.00. 143,215 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 175,097. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.97 and a beta of 0.76. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $76.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.36. Sensient Technologies has a one year low of $55.02 and a one year high of $82.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 3.74.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80. The firm had revenue of $392.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $390.64 million. Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 5.80%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Sensient Technologies will post 2.82 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Sensient Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Sensient Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th.

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.