HighTower Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 30,329 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 848 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sensient Technologies were worth $2,161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Sensient Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 18,766.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 566 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Sensient Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 152.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 77.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,787 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 779 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.86% of the company’s stock.

Sensient Technologies Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE SXT opened at $72.75 on Friday. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1-year low of $66.15 and a 1-year high of $82.99. The company has a current ratio of 3.55, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $73.10 and a 200-day moving average of $75.16. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.74 and a beta of 0.71.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 11.93% and a net margin of 8.01%. The company had revenue of $376.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $375.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. Sensient Technologies’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Sensient Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday.

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.