122,680 Shares in Stepan Company $SCL Bought by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon acquired 122,680 Stepan shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $6.84 million and representing about 0.54% of the company. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 82.7% of SCL.
• Stepan exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.18 in EPS versus the $0.61 consensus and revenue of $684.1 million, up 15% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed despite some upgrades: MarketBeat reports a consensus rating of “Reduce,” while Seaport Research Partners maintained a buy rating with an $85 price target. Stepan also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.395 per share, yielding approximately 2.5% annually.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 122,680 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $6,836,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.54% of Stepan at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SCL. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Stepan by 86.9% during the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 570 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Stepan by 206.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 521 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Stepan by 700.0% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 688 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 602 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Stepan in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Stepan during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on SCL shares. Zacks Research raised Stepan from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Stepan from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reissued a "buy" rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Stepan in a report on Friday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce".

Stepan Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SCL opened at $62.38 on Friday. Stepan Company has a 12-month low of $41.82 and a 12-month high of $68.00. The company has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of -519.83 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $684.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $635.85 million. Stepan had a positive return on equity of 3.90% and a negative net margin of 0.11%.The firm's revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Stepan Company will post 2.69 EPS for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.395 per share. This represents a $1.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1,316.67%.

Stepan Profile

Stepan Company is a global manufacturer of specialty and intermediate chemicals, primarily known for its development and production of surfactants and related specialty products. The company's portfolio includes a wide range of ingredients used to enhance the performance of consumer and industrial formulations, such as emulsifiers, foam control agents, odor control agents, antimicrobial products and performance additives. These products are integral components in cleaning solutions, personal care items, agrochemical formulations, coatings, oilfield treatments and polymer systems.

Serving a diverse set of end-markets, Stepan's offerings address both consumer-facing and industrial applications.

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