Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Raises Stock Holdings in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 924.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 82,901 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 74,809 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.37% of Stepan worth $6,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Stepan by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,562,730 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $242,306,000 after acquiring an additional 14,038 shares in the last quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Stepan in the 1st quarter worth approximately $680,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Stepan by 49.3% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,173 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,006,000 after buying an additional 3,690 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Stepan by 42.2% in the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 3,683 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 1,093 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in Stepan in the first quarter worth $725,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 28th.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP David Kabbes acquired 1,056 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $71.39 per share, with a total value of $75,387.84. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 1,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $75,387.84. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 7.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Stepan Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE SCL traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $72.96. The stock had a trading volume of 97,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 91,378. The business's 50 day moving average is $75.28 and its 200-day moving average is $80.97. Stepan has a 52 week low of $69.78 and a 52 week high of $96.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.69 and a beta of 0.80.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $556.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $581.30 million. Stepan had a net margin of 1.58% and a return on equity of 3.83%. The business's revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Stepan will post 2.09 EPS for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is currently 98.04%.

Stepan Profile

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.