Stepan (NYSE:SCL) to Post Q2 2024 Earnings of $0.79 Per Share, Seaport Res Ptn Forecasts

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) – Equities researchers at Seaport Res Ptn lowered their Q2 2024 EPS estimates for Stepan in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, April 17th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now expects that the basic materials company will earn $0.79 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.81. The consensus estimate for Stepan’s current full-year earnings is $2.53 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Stepan’s Q3 2024 earnings at $0.83 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $0.56 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $2.55 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.80 EPS.

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

Stepan Trading Down 0.9 %

SCL stock opened at $81.61 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.40 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 firm has a market cap of $1.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.63 and a beta of 0.83.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.04). Stepan had a return on equity of 4.20% and a net margin of 1.73%. The firm had revenue of $532.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $534.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Trading of Stepan

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its holdings in Stepan by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 18,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Stepan by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,462 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Stepan by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,534 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $425,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Stepan by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 3,031 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC raised its holdings in Stepan by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 4,316 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $21,916,602.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $21,916,602.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total transaction of $327,730.07. Following the transaction, the director now owns 255,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,029,142.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,637 shares of company stock worth $957,940 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.71%.

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.