International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Materials · $21.7B market cap · SEC CIK 0000051253
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Nov 2, 2026, after the close, with analysts expecting $0.80 in earnings per share.
The case for IFF
- Pays a 4.3% dividend while you wait.
- Has compounded revenue at 16.5% a year over five years.
- Current assets cover the near-term bills 2.1 times over.
The case against
- Very expensive at 75.0× earnings. Years of growth are already in the price.
- Revenue fell 11.7% year over year.
- Earnings per share down 91.8%.
- Long-term debt of $4.7B would take 6 years of operating cash flow to repay.
- Return on equity of only 2%.
- Net margin of 2.9% leaves very little room for error.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Materials companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 30 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 31 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 29 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 79 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 45 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 26 Materials companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 75.0× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 1.45× |
| Price / sales | 2.2× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | -11.7% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | -91.8% |
| Gross margin | 38% |
| Operating margin | 8% |
| Net margin | 3% |
| Return on equity | 2% |
| Debt / equity | 0.41× |
| Current ratio | 2.06 |
| Dividend yield | 4.34% |
| Beta | 0.91 |
| 52-week range | $59.14 – $89.32 |
| Position in that range | 88% of the way up |
| 3-month return | +9.0% |
| 1-year return | +31.6% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from International Flavors & Fragrances's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $10.9B | $11.5B | $11.5B | $12.4B | $11.7B |
| Gross profit | $3.9B | $4.1B | $3.7B | $4.2B | $3.7B |
| Operating income | -$382M | $766M | -$2.1B | -$1.3B | $585M |
| Operating cash flow | $850M | $1.1B | $1.5B | $397M | $1.4B |
| Capital expenditure | $594M | $463M | $503M | $504M | $393M |
| Total assets | $25.5B | $28.7B | $31.0B | $35.5B | $39.7B |
| Shareholder equity | $14.2B | $13.8B | $14.6B | $17.7B | $21.1B |
| Cash | $590M | $469M | $703M | $483M | $711M |
| Long-term debt | $4.7B | $7.6B | $9.2B | $10.4B | $10.8B |
| Free cash flow | $256M | $607M | $952M | -$107M | $1.0B |
| Gross margin | 36.2% | 35.9% | 32.1% | 33.4% | 32.0% |
| Operating margin | -3.5% | 6.7% | -18.4% | -10.7% | 5.0% |
| Diluted shares | 256M | 256M | 255M | 255M | 243M |
Share count is up 5.3% over 4 years. Mild issuance.
What International Flavors & Fragrances says it does
We are a leading creator and manufacturer of products for application in food, beverage, health & biosciences, and scent, as well as complementary adjacent products, including natural health ingredients, all of which are used in a wide variety of consumer and end-use products. Our products are sold principally to manufacturers of dairy, meat, beverages, snacks, savory, sweet, baked goods, grain processors and other foods, personal care products, soaps and detergents, cleaning products, perfumes, dietary supplements, food protection, infant, elderly and animal nutrition, functional food, bio-fuel, and oral care products. As a result, we hold global leadership positions in the Food & Beverage, Home & Personal Care and Health & Wellness markets, and across key Tastes, Textures, Scents, Nutrition, Enzymes, Cultures, Soy Proteins and Probiotics categories, among others. Sales in 2025 were $10.890 billion. Our business is geographically…
Risk factors IFF lists in its 10-K
- Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
- Consumer demand and preferences, as well as regulatory trends may impact demand for our products, which may have a negative effect on our operating results and future growth
- Our business is highly competitive, and if we are unable to compete effectively, our sales and results of operations will suffer
- Our performance may be adversely impacted if we are not successful in managing our inventory and/or working capital balances
- Our results of operations may be negatively impacted by legal claims, disputes, investigations and litigation, including the ongoing antitrust and competition investigations and related class action lawsuits
- We are exposed to AI-related risks and opportunities that if we fail to properly manage, could result in material liabilities, or otherwise materially adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition
- The impact of currency fluctuation or devaluation in the international markets in which we operate may negatively affect our results of operations
- International economic, political, legal, compliance and business factors could negatively affect our financial statements, operations and growth
- Our inability to recruit, retain or transition employees could adversely affect our ability to compete and achieve our strategic goals
- Any impairment of our tangible or intangible long-lived assets, including goodwill, may adversely impact our profitability
- Our ability to declare and pay dividends is subject to certain considerations
- Our funding obligations for our pension and postretirement plans could adversely affect our earnings and cash flows
- Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Considerations
- —Our results of operations may be negatively impacted by legal claims, disputes, investigations and litigation, including the ongoing antitrust and competition investigations and related class action lawsuits