International Assets Investment Management LLC Purchases 9,783 Shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 9,406.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,887 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 9,783 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC's holdings in Stepan were worth $935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of Stepan by 2,141.7% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 269 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Stepan by 277.5% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 453 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stepan Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of SCL traded down $0.36 on Wednesday, reaching $84.89. 48,992 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 76,953. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.51 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $87.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.52. Stepan has a 12 month low of $63.60 and a 12 month high of $100.61.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $532.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $534.48 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.20% and a net margin of 1.73%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Stepan will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stepan news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total value of $327,730.07. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 255,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,029,142.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Stepan news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total value of $327,730.07. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 255,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,029,142.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total transaction of $455,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,637 shares of company stock valued at $957,940 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.