Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

Stepan Price Performance

SCL opened at $77.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $75.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.39. Stepan has a fifty-two week low of $69.78 and a fifty-two week high of $96.68. The firm has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.38 and a beta of 0.81.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.38. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.56% and a net margin of 2.10%. The business had revenue of $546.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $577.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Stepan will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.385 dividend. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This is a boost from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.62%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Stepan by 3,053.3% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Stepan during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Stepan during the 2nd quarter worth $59,000. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Stepan by 60.0% in the second quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 43.9% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Stepan

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.