StockNews.com Upgrades Stepan (NYSE:SCL) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Sunday morning.

Stepan Stock Performance

Shares of SCL stock opened at $74.74 on Friday. Stepan has a one year low of $69.78 and a one year high of $96.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $75.26 and a 200-day moving average of $80.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.18 and a beta of 0.81.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.38. Stepan had a net margin of 2.10% and a return on equity of 4.56%. The company had revenue of $546.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $577.23 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. Stepan’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Stepan will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This is a positive change from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.63%.

Institutional Trading of Stepan

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in Stepan by 3,053.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stepan during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Stepan during the 2nd quarter worth about $59,000. Adirondack Trust Co. boosted its stake in Stepan by 60.0% in the 2nd quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Stepan by 43.9% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.