California Public Employees Retirement System Purchases 12,614 Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF

California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 392,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,614 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.15% of International Flavors & Fragrances worth $28,476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 42.1% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 29,263 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,123,000 after purchasing an additional 8,674 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 8.2% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,990 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 17,732 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,286,000 after buying an additional 3,298 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,598,636 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $115,981,000 after buying an additional 10,654 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 16,421 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,191,000 after buying an additional 1,673 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $74.00 to $71.00 in a report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $96.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $97.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised International Flavors & Fragrances from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.16.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Performance

International Flavors & Fragrances stock opened at $76.22 on Wednesday. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 1-year low of $59.14 and a 1-year high of $84.45. The company’s 50-day moving average is $76.55 and its 200 day moving average is $74.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.17. International Flavors & Fragrances had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 7.78%.The firm had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 4.55 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 260,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $74.28 per share, with a total value of $19,312,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 2,682,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $199,273,184.40. This trade represents a 10.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc (NYSE:IFF) is a global leader in the creation and production of flavors, fragrances, cosmetic actives and nutritional lipids. The company develops taste and scent solutions for a wide array of end markets including food and beverage, personal care, household goods and pharmaceutical products. Its portfolio spans natural and nature-identical flavors, fine fragrances, functional ingredients for skin and hair care, and specialty oils that enhance nutritional value and sensory appeal.

IFF’s research and development network comprises innovation centers in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, where multidisciplinary teams collaborate on aroma chemistry, sensory science and biotechnology.