Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.29 EPS

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.29, Briefing.com reports. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.20% and a net margin of 1.73%. The firm had revenue of $551.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $575.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 15.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Stepan Stock Performance

NYSE SCL traded up $0.95 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $83.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 51,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 76,736. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $86.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.14. The firm has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.01 and a beta of 0.83. Stepan has a 52 week low of $63.60 and a 52 week high of $100.61.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. Stepan's dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stepan news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $455,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $455,350.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at $23,274,486.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.43, for a total value of $174,860.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 250,676 shares in the company, valued at $21,916,602.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,637 shares of company stock valued at $957,940 in the last three months. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Stepan from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th.

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.