Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT)

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Sensient Technologies Co. (NYSE:SXT) by 1.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 961,455 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,868 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Sensient Technologies were worth $77,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SXT. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Sensient Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies during the third quarter worth approximately $72,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $129,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 2,753.7% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,912 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,845 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in shares of Sensient Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. 90.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Sensient Technologies

In related news, insider Michael C. Geraghty sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.48, for a total value of $321,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,938,968.64. This trade represents a 9.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sensient Technologies Price Performance

SXT opened at $73.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 3.74 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $77.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.51. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.09 and a beta of 0.76. Sensient Technologies Co. has a 1 year low of $55.02 and a 1 year high of $82.99.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.80. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.41%. The firm had revenue of $392.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $390.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.75 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Sensient Technologies Co. will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Sensient Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Sensient Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Sensient Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th.

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.