Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Stepan Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE SCL opened at $89.26 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $85.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.31. Stepan has a twelve month low of $63.60 and a twelve month high of $96.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a PE ratio of 53.77 and a beta of 0.81.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $551.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $575.83 million. Stepan had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 4.04%. The company’s revenue was down 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.71 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Stepan will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SCL. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 0.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 120,156 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,008,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Stepan in the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Stepan during the fourth quarter valued at about $55,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Stepan by 277.5% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 453 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Stepan by 2,141.7% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 269 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Stepan Company Profile

Stepan Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells specialty and intermediate chemicals to other manufacturers for use in various end products worldwide. It operates through three segments: Surfactants, Polymers, and Specialty Products. The Surfactants segment offers surfactants that are used in consumer and industrial cleaning and disinfection products, including detergents for washing clothes, dishes, carpets, and floors and walls, as well as shampoos and body washes; and other applications, such as fabric softeners, germicidal quaternary compounds, disinfectants, and lubricating ingredients.