Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Director Buys $31,765.00 in Stock

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the transaction, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of SCL stock traded down $3.30 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $58.08. The company had a trading volume of 228,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 126,771. Stepan has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $94.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.21. The firm's fifty day moving average is $63.27 and its 200 day moving average is $70.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.28 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Remove Ads

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Institutional Trading of Stepan

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Stepan by 781.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 617 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 43.9% during the third 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. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Stepan in the third quarter valued at $161,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Stepan in the third quarter valued at about $168,000. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.