Stepan Company $SCL Shares Purchased by Grace & White Inc. NY

Key Points

• Grace & White Inc. NY increased its holdings in Stepan Company by 6.2%, owning 143,363 shares valued at approximately $7.83 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Stepan Company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.52, missing analyst expectations by $0.40, with revenues of $594.69 million for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.385 per share, reflecting a 3.3% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 60.63%.

Grace & White Inc. NY boosted its stake in Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 6.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 143,363 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 8,350 shares during the quarter. Stepan accounts for about 1.4% of Grace & White Inc. NY's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Grace & White Inc. NY owned 0.63% of Stepan worth $7,825,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Stepan by 11,484.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,365 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $791,000 after acquiring an additional 14,241 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Stepan by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 105,341 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,798,000 after acquiring an additional 2,731 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its stake in Stepan by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 109,339 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,018,000 after acquiring an additional 10,464 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Stepan by 60.8% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,773 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,560 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Stepan by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 426,421 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $23,470,000 after purchasing an additional 23,022 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company's stock.

Stepan Stock Down 1.9%

NYSE SCL opened at $47.23 on Friday. Stepan Company has a 52 week low of $44.23 and a 52 week high of $82.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $49.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.19. The firm has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59 and a beta of 0.96.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last posted 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). Stepan had a return on equity of 4.78% and a net margin of 2.57%.The company had revenue of $594.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $598.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.41 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Stepan Company will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. Stepan's payout ratio is currently 60.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Zacks Research cut shares of Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Stepan from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Sell".

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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