Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on shares of Sensient Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Sensient Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Sensient Technologies from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Sensient Technologies from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Sensient Technologies from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.67.

Sensient Technologies Trading Up 0.5%

Sensient Technologies stock opened at $129.18 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $130.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $117.06. Sensient Technologies has a 52 week low of $82.60 and a 52 week high of $138.82. The stock has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 34.82 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.17. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 9.27% and a return on equity of 13.77%. The company had revenue of $462.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $448.84 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sensient Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.100-4.200 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Sensient Technologies will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Sensient Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.20%.

Insider Transactions at Sensient Technologies

In related news, Director Mario Ferruzzi sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.48, for a total transaction of $155,376.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $951,936.96. This represents a 14.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sensient Technologies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SXT. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sensient Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth $818,403,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in Sensient Technologies during the second quarter valued at about $211,264,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Sensient Technologies by 2.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,046,850 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $90,494,000 after acquiring an additional 22,793 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Sensient Technologies by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,010,258 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $94,930,000 after acquiring an additional 4,123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Sensient Technologies during the first quarter worth about $77,955,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.86% of the company’s stock.

About Sensient Technologies

Sensient Technologies Corporation (NYSE:SXT) is a global manufacturer and marketer of colors, flavors, and fragrances. The company develops specialized ingredients and formulations used by food and beverage producers, pharmaceutical companies, personal care and cosmetics manufacturers, and other industrial customers.

Sensient’s product portfolio includes natural and synthetic color systems, flavoring extracts, sweeteners, seasonings, fragrances, and other functional ingredients. Its technologies are designed for applications such as beverages, confectionery, baked goods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, household products, and pet food.

Founded in 1882 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Sensient serves customers through manufacturing, research, and sales operations across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and other international markets.