Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Sets New 12-Month Low After Earnings Miss

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $59.55 and last traded at $63.53, with a volume of 11033 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $62.49.

The basic materials company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $525.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $520.97 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. Stepan's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.33 EPS.

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 paid a dividend of $0.385 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Institutional Trading of Stepan

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SCL. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 110.6% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Stepan by 781.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 617 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 285 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Stepan during the third quarter worth approximately $161,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Stepan during the third quarter valued at approximately $168,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Stepan Stock Down 1.8 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a fifty day moving average of $64.21 and a 200-day moving average of $71.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

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.