Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Director Susan Lewis Buys 500 Shares of Stock

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Director Susan Lewis purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $120,452.88. The trade was a 35.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Stepan Trading Down 2.3 %

Stepan stock opened at $61.89 on Thursday. Stepan has a 1 year low of $59.55 and a 1 year high of $94.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $63.51 and its 200-day moving average is $71.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.21. The company has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.00 and a beta of 0.84.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $525.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $520.97 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.385 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Stepan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Stepan by 110.6% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 781.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 617 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position in Stepan by 43.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Stepan during the third quarter valued at approximately $161,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Stepan in the third quarter worth approximately $168,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.