New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 623 Shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lowered its position in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,110 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 623 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Stepan were worth $3,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SCL. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Stepan by 172.9% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 410,365 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,688,000 after acquiring an additional 260,016 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Stepan by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,951,932 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $197,828,000 after buying an additional 221,795 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Stepan during the 4th quarter worth about $22,622,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Stepan by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,165,082 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $162,317,000 after buying an additional 162,560 shares during the period. Finally, BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in Stepan by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 3,733,939 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $368,951,000 after buying an additional 112,113 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total value of $327,730.07. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,029,142.37. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.43, for a total transaction of $174,860.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 250,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,916,602.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 3,637 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.11, for a total value of $327,730.07. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at $23,029,142.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,637 shares of company stock valued at $957,940 in the last ninety days. 6.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Stepan Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:SCL opened at $84.10 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.06 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The business’s 50-day moving average is $88.68 and its 200-day moving average is $84.94. Stepan has a 1 year low of $63.60 and a 1 year high of $101.80.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $532.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $534.48 million. Stepan had a net margin of 1.73% and a return on equity of 4.20%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Stepan will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is 85.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised Stepan from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a 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.