Fisher Asset Management LLC Has $3.63 Million Stake in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Fisher Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Stepan (NYSE:SCL) by 22.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,360 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 11,082 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.17% of Stepan worth $3,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Burney Co. raised its holdings in Stepan by 5.0% during the third quarter. Burney Co. now owns 4,802 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $360,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 2,141.7% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 269 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of Stepan by 6.5% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 4,764 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $357,000 after buying an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC increased its holdings in Stepan by 0.9% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 34,715 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,603,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in Stepan by 1.5% during the third quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 23,167 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,737,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stepan Stock Performance

SCL opened at $86.98 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.40 and a beta of 0.84. Stepan has a 12-month low of $63.60 and a 12-month high of $100.61. The business has a 50 day moving average of $86.49 and a 200-day moving average of $86.65.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.29. The firm 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Stepan will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 30th. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.36%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $455,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $455,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at $23,274,486.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total value of $327,730.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,029,142.37. 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. 7.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.