Squarepoint Ops LLC Decreases Stake in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Squarepoint Ops LLC reduced its stake in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 84.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,662 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 31,192 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Stepan were worth $366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Stepan by 781.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 617 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Stepan by 40.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the 4th quarter worth $239,000. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its stake 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 buying an additional 837 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the 4th quarter worth $294,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday.

Stepan Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:SCL opened at $54.17 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Stepan has a 52-week low of $44.23 and a 52-week high of $94.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.36.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $593.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $562.77 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The business's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.

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