Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 161,628 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 6,050 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.72% of Stepan worth $10,457,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Stepan by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,560,605 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $165,671,000 after acquiring an additional 25,841 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Stepan by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,195,187 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $92,328,000 after purchasing an additional 17,530 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Stepan by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 486,976 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,626,000 after purchasing an additional 4,777 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 451,123 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $29,188,000 after buying an additional 54,943 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Stepan by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 403,399 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,100,000 after buying an additional 29,179 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Stepan

In other Stepan news, Director Susan Lewis purchased 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This trade represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCL traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $47.24. The company had a trading volume of 18,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 111,237. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $56.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $65.91. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Stepan has a twelve month low of $44.23 and a twelve month high of $94.77.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.33). Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The company had revenue of $525.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $520.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Stepan Company 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.