Jupiter Topco LLC Purchases Shares of 408,064 International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. $IFF

Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE:IFF) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 408,064 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,327,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of IFF. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 53,741 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,622,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,249 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,162,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC grew its stake in International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 42,033 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,855,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in International Flavors & Fragrances by 55.7% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 587 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in International Flavors & Fragrances by 6.3% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,875 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. UBS Group lifted their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded International Flavors & Fragrances from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $96.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Flavors & Fragrances presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Marc Birenkrant sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $85,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $292,910. This trade represents a 22.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 260,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $74.28 per share, for a total transaction of $19,312,800.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,682,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,273,184.40. The trade was a 10.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 15,543 shares of company stock valued at $1,315,659 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

IFF stock opened at $87.88 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. has a 12 month low of $59.14 and a 12 month high of $89.32. The firm has a market cap of $22.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $80.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.80.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.25). International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. International Flavors & Fragrances’s payout ratio is 146.79%.

International Flavors & Fragrances announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 4th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 12.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

International Flavors & Fragrances 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.