Public Sector Pension Investment Board Has $3.69 Million Stake in Stepan Company $SCL

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Stepan Company by 27.3%, acquiring an additional 14,361 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total to 67,058 shares valued at approximately $3.69 million.
• Stepan Company reported a Q2 earnings miss with an EPS of $0.52, falling short of the consensus estimate by $0.40, while revenue showed a 6.9% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.385 per share, delivering a dividend yield of 3.2% and reflecting a payout ratio of 60.63%.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 27.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,058 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 14,361 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned 0.30% of Stepan worth $3,691,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its position in Stepan by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 6,606 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Stepan by 2.7% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 14,057 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $774,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Stepan by 67.9% during the 1st quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,048 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Stepan by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,146 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in Stepan by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 13,100 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $848,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SCL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, Stepan has an average rating of "Sell".

Stepan Stock Performance

Shares of SCL stock traded up $2.1640 on Friday, hitting $51.9640. The company's stock had a trading volume of 163,208 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,417. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock's 50 day moving average is $54.21 and its 200-day moving average is $54.86. Stepan Company has a fifty-two week low of $44.23 and a fifty-two week high of $82.08. The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of 20.46 and a beta of 0.98.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.40). The business had revenue of $594.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $598.25 million. Stepan had a net margin of 2.57% and a return on equity of 4.78%. The company's revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Stepan Company will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.63%.

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.