Wealthfront Advisers LLC Buys New Stake in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 102,021 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,270,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,462 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 4,521 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,617 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. 90.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Sensient Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Sensient Technologies Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of SXT opened at $72.93 on Thursday. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1-year low of $66.14 and a 1-year high of $82.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.58 and a 200 day moving average of $75.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.01. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 11.93%. The company had revenue of $376.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $375.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. Sensient Technologies’s payout ratio is 55.78%.

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.