Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Stock Price

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) had its target price dropped by stock analysts at Barclays from $105.00 to $103.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 23.07% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on IFF. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 25th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup boosted their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Argus upped their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.05.

International Flavors & Fragrances Price Performance

Shares of International Flavors & Fragrances stock traded down $2.67 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $83.69. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 562,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,867,699. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $87.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.72. The stock has a market cap of $21.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 117.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.86. International Flavors & Fragrances has a one year low of $61.72 and a one year high of $95.27.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. International Flavors & Fragrances had a net margin of 1.97% and a return on equity of 6.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. On average, analysts predict that International Flavors & Fragrances will post 3.24 EPS for the current year.

International Flavors & Fragrances announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 4th that permits the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 12.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other International Flavors & Fragrances news, insider De Mendonca Ana Paula Teles sold 5,718 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.19, for a total value of $475,680.42. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Flavors & Fragrances

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter worth about $1,835,955,000. Nykredit A S purchased a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the second quarter worth $223,065,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 8.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,809,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $131,222,000 after buying an additional 147,896 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter worth $131,760,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances by 0.7% during the first 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.02% of the company’s stock.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc (NYSE:IFF) develops and manufactures ingredients, flavor systems, fragrances and specialty solutions used in consumer and industrial products. Its offerings support food and beverage manufacturers, fragrance and personal care companies, household-product makers, pharmaceutical businesses and other customers.

The company’s portfolio includes flavors for beverages, dairy products, sweet goods, savory foods and other applications; fragrances for fine fragrance, personal care and home care products; and functional ingredients, enzymes, cultures, natural extracts and other specialty materials.