ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Cuts Stake in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP trimmed its position in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 74.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,130 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 23,484 shares during the period. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP's holdings in Stepan were worth $526,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Stepan by 110.6% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Stepan by 40.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Stepan by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 6,650 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 816 shares in the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Stepan by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 4,254 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its position in Stepan by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,208 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Susan Lewis bought 500 shares of the company'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 completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This trade represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Stepan Stock Up 0.9 %

SCL traded up $0.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $47.38. The stock had a trading volume of 102,260 shares, compared to its average volume of 111,830. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.21. Stepan has a twelve month low of $44.23 and a twelve month high of $94.77. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.70.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.68%.

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.