Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Shares Acquired by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,310,760 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,392 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.83% of Stepan worth $84,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted 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 valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Stepan by 40.8% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Stepan in the fourth quarter valued at $239,000. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its position in shares of Stepan by 24.5% during the 4th quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 4,254 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,896 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This trade represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SCL traded down $0.64 on Monday, hitting $54.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,794. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $53.54 and a 200-day moving average of $63.57. The company has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.52 and a beta of 0.97. Stepan has a 12-month low of $44.23 and a 12-month high of $94.77. 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 (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.33. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The company had revenue of $593.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $562.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Stepan will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Stepan's payout ratio is currently 62.60%.

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.