Seaport Res Ptn Research Analysts Lift Earnings Estimates for Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) – Seaport Res Ptn lifted their Q1 2024 earnings estimates for Stepan in a research note issued on Wednesday, April 17th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now expects that the basic materials company will earn $0.39 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.38. The consensus estimate for Stepan’s current full-year earnings is $2.50 per share.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.04). Stepan had a return on equity of 4.20% and a net margin of 1.73%. The firm had revenue of $532.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $534.48 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis.

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

Stepan Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of SCL stock opened at $84.17 on Friday. Stepan has a fifty-two week low of $63.60 and a fifty-two week high of $100.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $88.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a PE ratio of 48.10 and a beta of 0.83.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Stepan

In related news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,274,486.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Stepan news, Director F Quinn Stepan, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction dated 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 255,567 shares in the company, valued at $23,274,486.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,637 shares of company stock worth $957,940 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Stepan by 5,436.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 516,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $48,854,000 after acquiring an additional 507,371 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Stepan by 172.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 410,365 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $43,688,000 after buying an additional 260,016 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake 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 bought a new position in Stepan in the fourth quarter worth approximately $22,622,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in Stepan by 8.1% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,165,082 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $162,317,000 after acquiring an additional 162,560 shares during the period. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.