Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut Stepan from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan Trading Down 0.7%

SCL opened at $56.43 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -91.01 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.56. Stepan has a 1-year low of $41.82 and a 1-year high of $68.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.06. Stepan had a positive return on equity of 2.65% and a negative net margin of 0.61%.The business had revenue of $604.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Stepan will post 2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.395 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -254.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its stake in Stepan by 5.2% during the first quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 947,452 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,354,000 after acquiring an additional 47,075 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stepan by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 514,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,362,000 after purchasing an additional 2,060 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 477,456 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $22,612,000 after purchasing an additional 23,097 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 195.5% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 299,970 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,207,000 after purchasing an additional 198,457 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Stepan by 36.7% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 285,918 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,541,000 after purchasing an additional 76,711 shares during the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stepan Company Profile

Stepan Company is a global manufacturer of specialty and intermediate chemicals, primarily known for its development and production of surfactants and related specialty products. The company’s portfolio includes a wide range of ingredients used to enhance the performance of consumer and industrial formulations, such as emulsifiers, foam control agents, odor control agents, antimicrobial products and performance additives. These products are integral components in cleaning solutions, personal care items, agrochemical formulations, coatings, oilfield treatments and polymer systems.

Serving a diverse set of end-markets, Stepan’s offerings address both consumer-facing and industrial applications.