Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Sensient Technologies (NYSE:SXT) released its earnings results on Friday. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.06), Briefing.com reports. Sensient Technologies had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The company had revenue of $393.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $395.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sensient Technologies updated its FY 2026 guidance to 3.600-3.800 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Sensient Technologies’ conference call:

• Strong 2025 financial performance — the company reported 3% local-currency revenue growth, 10% local-currency adjusted EBITDA growth, 15% local-currency adjusted EPS growth, and a 100-basis-point improvement in adjusted EBITDA margin.
• Natural color conversion is described as the company’s “single largest opportunity” with a $1.0B sales target; management says the Color Group should deliver high-single- to double-digit revenue growth in 2026 with conversions ramping materially in Q3–Q4.
• Management will invest heavily to capture conversions — guiding $150–170M capex in 2026 and $225–250M total 2025–2028 for natural color conversion — which will raise debt and interest (~$36M guided for 2026), pressure first-half profit leverage, and preclude share buybacks.
• Near-term operational headwinds remain — tariff-related supply-chain disruptions in Asia Pacific and severe California weather led to a ~$3M one-time agricultural inventory loss, causing a flat start to 2026 for Flavors & Extracts and Asia with recovery weighted to the back half of the year.

Sensient Technologies Price Performance

NYSE:SXT traded down $1.20 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $96.73. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 878,039 shares, compared to its average volume of 273,593. Sensient Technologies has a twelve month low of $67.61 and a twelve month high of $121.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 4.59 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.87. The company has a market capitalization of $4.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.35 and a beta of 0.58.

Sensient Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Sensient Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on SXT. Zacks Research raised shares of Sensient Technologies to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sensient Technologies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sensient Technologies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.00.

Insider Activity at Sensient Technologies

In other news, Director Essie Whitelaw sold 3,985 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.02, for a total value of $378,654.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,627,502.56. This represents a 18.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sensient Technologies

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Sensient Technologies by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,132 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 548,337 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $51,516,000 after buying an additional 21,217 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 95,335 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $8,957,000 after acquiring an additional 3,035 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of Sensient Technologies by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 69,983 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $6,575,000 after acquiring an additional 18,360 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sensient Technologies by 53.1% during the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 401 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. 90.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sensient Technologies

Sensient Technologies Corporation is a global leader in the manufacture and supply of colors, flavors and fragrances for a broad range of end-markets. The company develops and produces ingredients that enhance the appearance, taste and scent of products in the food, beverage, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, personal care and household sectors. Its portfolio includes natural and synthetic colorants, botanical and artificial flavor systems, fragrance compounds and specialty chemical offerings tailored to customer specifications.

Within its flavor and fragrance division, Sensient provides custom formulations for sweet, savory and umami taste profiles along with fragrance blends for personal care and cosmetic applications.