International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. IFF is scheduled to report third-quarter 2026 results on Nov. 3, after the closing bell.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales is pegged at $1.92 billion, indicating a 28.9% dip from the year-ago reported figure.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 81 cents per share, which has been moved up in the past 60 days. The estimate indicates a year-over-year decline of 22.9%.
IFF’s Earnings Surprise History
International Flavors’ earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in one, the average beat being 4.5%.
What the Zacks Model Unveils for International Flavors
Our model does not predict an earnings beat for IFF this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. That is not the case here.
Earnings ESP: IFF has an Earnings ESP of -2.54%. You can uncover the best stocks before they are reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Zacks Rank: The company currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2.
Factors Likely to Have Shaped IFF’s Q3 Performance
The company has been witnessing volume growth, with broad-based contributions across each of its businesses. IFF’s ongoing efforts to improve productivity and reduce costs are likely to have benefited its margins.
However, International Flavors has been incurring high raw material costs and additional costs related to labor, shipping and cleaning.
Despite its pricing actions and focused cost-reduction efforts, these factors are likely to have dented margins in the to-be-reported quarter.
In late May, International Flavors announced that it inked a deal with CVC Capital Partners to sell its Food Ingredients business. The deal is in sync with International Flavors’ portfolio transformation strategy, which is expected to solidify its focus on its innovation-driven businesses. Starting in second-quarter 2026, the Food Ingredients disposal group is reported as discontinued operations.
Projections for International Flavors’ Segments in Q3
Our model estimates the Taste segment’s third-quarter sales to dip 0.1% year over year to $634 million. The segment’s adjusted operating EBITDA is projected to be $100 million, indicating a fall of 21.8% from the year-ago quarter’s reported numbers.
We expect the Scent segment’s sales to dip 2.7% year over year to $634 million. The ongoing momentum in Consumer Fragrance, as well as improvement in Fragrance Ingredients and Fine Fragrance, is likely to have aided its performance. However, the gains might have been partially negated by higher costs. Our estimate for the segment’s quarterly operating EBITDA is $139 million, indicating a year-over-year rise of 2.9%.
The Health & Biosciences segment’s sales are projected to be $637 million, indicating a 10.4% increase from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure. We expect operating EBITDA to increase 20.2% to $120 million.
IFF Stock’s Price Performance
In the past year, International Flavors shares have gained 43.8% compared with the industry’s 9.1% growth.
Stocks to Consider
Here are some Basic Materials stocks, which, according to our model, also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat in their upcoming releases.
Avient AVNT, scheduled to release third-quarter 2026 earnings on Nov. 4, has an Earnings ESP of +0.58% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings for Avient for the third quarter of 2026 is 81 cents per share, indicating a 15.7% year-over-year increase. Avient has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 3.4%.
Perimeter Solutions, SA PRM, scheduled to release third-quarter 2026 earnings on Nov. 5, has an Earnings ESP of +3.16% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Perimeter Solutions’ earnings for the third quarter of 2026 is pegged at 95 cents per share, indicating 15.8% growth from the year-ago quarter's reported figure. PRM has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 61.6%.
Air Products and Chemicals APD, scheduled to release third-quarter 2026 earnings on Nov. 5, has an Earnings ESP of +0.44% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings for Air Products and Chemicals for the third quarter of 2026 is pegged at $3.60 per share, suggesting a 6.2% year-over-year increase. APD has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 2.9%.
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International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF): Free Stock Analysis Report
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).