Insider Selling: Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) Insider Sells 400 Shares of Stock

Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) insider Steven B. Morris sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.97, for a total value of $29,188.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $297,863.54. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Sensient Technologies Stock Performance

Sensient Technologies stock opened at $73.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 4.31. The company has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 34.25 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $68.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.71. Sensient Technologies Co. has a fifty-two week low of $52.90 and a fifty-two week high of $78.70.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.04). Sensient Technologies had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 6.16%. The firm had revenue of $349.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $371.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Sensient Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.28%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Winder Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $368,711,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Sensient Technologies by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,389,711 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $355,721,000 after buying an additional 64,683 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Sensient Technologies by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,688,101 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $111,617,000 after acquiring an additional 303,612 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,161,451 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $76,657,000 after acquiring an additional 129,386 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies in the 4th quarter worth $36,188,000. 90.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Sensient Technologies from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday.

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.