Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.33, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $593.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $562.77 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. Stepan's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share.

Stepan Stock Performance

NYSE SCL traded up $1.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $54.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 243,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 118,242. The stock has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a PE ratio of 24.84 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.66. Stepan has a 52 week low of $44.23 and a 52 week high of $94.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.385 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $63.53 per share, for a total transaction of $31,765.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at $120,452.88. This represents a 35.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised Stepan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday.

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.