International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) Stock Rating Lowered by Bank of America

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Bank of America from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $91.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Bank of America‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 5.16% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on IFF. Argus boosted their target price on shares of International Flavors & Fragrances from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Barclays increased their price target on International Flavors & Fragrances from $96.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. UBS Group raised their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on International Flavors & Fragrances from $95.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on International Flavors & Fragrances from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, International Flavors & Fragrances has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.16.

International Flavors & Fragrances Stock Down 1.3%

IFF stock opened at $86.54 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $87.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.92. International Flavors & Fragrances has a 12 month low of $61.72 and a 12 month high of $95.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 121.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.86.

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that International Flavors & Fragrances will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Flavors & Fragrances declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, August 4th that allows the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 12.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider De Mendonca Ana Paula Teles sold 5,718 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.19, for a total transaction of $475,680.42. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of International Flavors & Fragrances

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of IFF. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances during the second quarter valued at about $1,835,955,000. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter valued at about $223,065,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter valued at about $131,760,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter valued at about $122,792,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in International Flavors & Fragrances in the 2nd quarter valued at about $107,310,000. 96.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Flavors & Fragrances Company Profile

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.