Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires Shares of 7,246 Stepan Company $SCL

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP has acquired a new stake in Stepan Company, purchasing 7,246 shares valued at approximately $399,000 in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Northern Trust Corp and Algert Global LLC, have also increased their holdings in Stepan, reflecting strong interest in the company's stock.
• Wall Street analysts have recently downgraded Stepan's stock ratings, with an average rating of “Sell” according to MarketBeat data.

Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 7,246 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $399,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SCL. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 14,018 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $907,000 after acquiring an additional 2,746 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 46,688 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,022,000 after acquiring an additional 1,898 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,310,760 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $84,806,000 after acquiring an additional 18,392 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 12,865 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $832,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 31.3% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 13,223 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $856,000 after acquiring an additional 3,153 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Stepan Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of SCL stock traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $50.16. 148,328 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 178,516. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.57. Stepan Company has a fifty-two week low of $44.23 and a fifty-two week high of $82.08. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75 and a beta of 0.98.

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

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Sell".

Stepan Company 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.