Amundi Boosts Position in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 196.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,633 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,712 shares during the quarter. Amundi owned 0.05% of Stepan worth $720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SCL. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Stepan by 43.9% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Stepan by 82.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 32,398 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 14,673 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Stepan by 4,144.2% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 20,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,551,000 after purchasing an additional 19,602 shares during the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. increased its position in shares of Stepan by 24.8% during the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 3,417 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Stepan in the 3rd quarter valued at about $370,000. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Stepan Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE SCL traded down $0.78 during trading on Friday, hitting $58.10. The stock had a trading volume of 390,368 shares, compared to its average volume of 100,224. The company has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 26.29 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $61.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.08. Stepan has a twelve month low of $56.50 and a twelve month high of $94.77.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.33). The firm had revenue of $525.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $520.97 million. Stepan had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 4.21%. The business's revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.385 dividend. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Stepan's payout ratio is presently 69.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $63.53 per share, for a total transaction of $31,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,896 shares of the company's stock, valued at $120,452.88. This represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.90% of the company's stock.

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.