Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Issues Earnings Results

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.29, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $551.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $575.83 million. Stepan had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 4.04%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share.

Stepan Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Stepan stock opened at $83.95 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Stepan has a 52-week low of $63.60 and a 52-week high of $100.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $86.98 and a 200 day moving average of $86.14. The company has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.57 and a beta of 0.84.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be paid a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 90.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stepan from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $455,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $455,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.43, for a total transaction of $174,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 250,676 shares in the company, valued at $21,916,602.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,637 shares of company stock valued at $957,940. 6.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.