Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Stepan (NYSE:SCL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $61.89 and last traded at $62.28, with a volume of 75744 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $63.53.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 17th.

Stepan Price Performance

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $72.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $76.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.99 and a beta of 0.84.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.38. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.56% and a net margin of 2.10%. The company had revenue of $546.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.23 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Stepan will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.385 per share. This is a positive change from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.62%.

Institutional Trading of Stepan

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Stepan by 924.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 82,901 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,404,000 after acquiring an additional 74,809 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in Stepan by 409.2% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 92,053 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,111,000 after purchasing an additional 73,976 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Stepan by 51.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 211,302 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,741,000 after buying an additional 71,431 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 747,140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $62,730,000 after buying an additional 52,944 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Stepan by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,279,450 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $107,421,000 after buying an additional 34,264 shares during the period. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.