Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL)’s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $49.01 and traded as high as $52.85. Stepan shares last traded at $51.99, with a volume of 424,711 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SCL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Stepan in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Stepan from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan Stock Up 1.7%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $46.16 and a 200-day moving average of $49.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.26 and a beta of 1.05.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.12. Stepan had a return on equity of 3.70% and a net margin of 1.96%.The firm had revenue of $590.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $593.65 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Stepan Company will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.395 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.80%.

Institutional Trading of Stepan

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Stepan by 45.4% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 206.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 521 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its position in shares of Stepan by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 5,449 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Stepan by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 5,447 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Stepan by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 8,936 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $488,000 after buying an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stepan Company Profile

Stepan Company is a global manufacturer of specialty and intermediate chemicals, primarily known for its development and production of surfactants and related specialty products. The company’s portfolio includes a wide range of ingredients used to enhance the performance of consumer and industrial formulations, such as emulsifiers, foam control agents, odor control agents, antimicrobial products and performance additives. These products are integral components in cleaning solutions, personal care items, agrochemical formulations, coatings, oilfield treatments and polymer systems.

Serving a diverse set of end-markets, Stepan’s offerings address both consumer-facing and industrial applications.