CF vs. IFF: CF Industries vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) both belong to the Chemicals industry, though CF is classified under Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals while IFF falls under Specialty Chemicals.

Company profile comparison for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Profile Item	CF	IFF
Name	CF Industries Holdings, Inc.	International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Chemicals	Chemicals
GICS Sub-Industry	Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals	Specialty Chemicals
Market Capitalization	17.46 billion USD	20.69 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	August 11, 2005	December 17, 1974
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

IFF

GSPC

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Total Return (1Y)	49.36%	40.13%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	17.00%	8.28%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	16.09%	-8.71%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

IFF

GSPC

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	43.66%	36.26%
Beta (5Y)	0.56	0.88
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-48.36%	-56.66%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.49M	1.88M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CF and IFF are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.03	0.99
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.59	1.71

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) reports a negative ROE of -7.37%; negative ROE can reflect losses or negative shareholders’ equity, so it is harder to read as capital efficiency. Meanwhile CF Industries (CF) reports 30.86%, ranking against industry peers normally.

CF

Materials industry group

30.86%

Max: 52.88%
CF: 30.86%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

IFF

Materials industry group

-7.37%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
IFF: -7.37%
Min: -32.81%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 27.48% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 1.68%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

CF

Materials industry group

27.48%

Max: 38.66%
CF: 27.48%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

IFF

Materials industry group

1.68%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
IFF: 1.68%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 34.36% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 9.53%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

CF

Materials industry group

34.36%

Max: 66.70%
CF: 34.36%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

IFF

Materials industry group

9.53%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
IFF: 9.53%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
ROE (TTM)	30.86%	-7.37%
ROA (TTM)	12.61%	2.18%
Net Margin (TTM)	27.48%	1.68%
Operating Margin (TTM)	34.36%	9.53%
Gross Margin (TTM)	42.52%	36.27%

Growth

Revenue Growth

CF Industries (CF) at 19.34% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at -5.17% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

CF Industries (CF) at 33.09% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at -248.42% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Revenue Growth (YoY)	19.34%	-5.17%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-14.12%	-4.34%
EPS Growth (YoY)	33.09%	-248.42%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-18.19%	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both CF Industries (CF) at 2.98 and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 1.87 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

CF

Materials industry group

2.98

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
CF: 2.98
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

IFF

Materials industry group

1.87

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
IFF: 1.87
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both CF Industries (CF) at 0.41 and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 0.51 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

CF

Materials industry group

0.41

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
CF: 0.41
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

IFF

Materials industry group

0.51

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
IFF: 0.51
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.98	1.87
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.41	0.51
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.21	3.51

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 1.85% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while CF Industries (CF) at 1.77% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, IFF the richer one.

CF

Materials industry group

1.77%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
CF: 1.77%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

IFF

Materials industry group

1.85%

Max: 4.52%
IFF: 1.85%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 14.81% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 62.26% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

CF

Materials industry group

14.81%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
CF: 14.81%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

IFF

Materials industry group

62.26%

Max: 83.62%
IFF: 62.26%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.77%	1.85%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	14.81%	62.26%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 8.42 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 236.06 trades above its peer range — a wide earnings-valuation gap relative to industry peers.

CF

Materials industry group

8.42

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
CF: 8.42
Min: 3.93

IFF

Materials industry group

236.06

IFF: 236.06
Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both CF Industries (CF) at 2.20 and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 1.91 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

CF

Materials industry group

2.20

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
CF: 2.20
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

IFF

Materials industry group

1.91

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
IFF: 1.91
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both CF Industries (CF) at 3.10 and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) at 1.56 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

CF

Materials industry group

3.10

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
CF: 3.10
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

IFF

Materials industry group

1.56

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
IFF: 1.56
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

CF Industries (CF) vs. Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Intl Flavors & Fragrances (IFF)
Metric	CF	IFF
P/E Ratio (TTM)	8.42	236.06
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.20	1.91
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	3.10	1.56
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	9.10%	-10.66%