Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Share Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $48.83 and traded as high as $54.75. Stepan shares last traded at $54.7150, with a volume of 158,118 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on SCL shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Stepan from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Stepan in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Stepan presently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan Trading Up 2.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $47.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a PE ratio of 27.63 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Stepan Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th were given a dividend of $0.395 per share. This is a boost from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio is 79.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stepan

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Stepan by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $617,000 after buying an additional 859 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Stepan during the 1st quarter worth $818,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Stepan by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,701 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $699,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Stepan by 4.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 66,301 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,649,000 after acquiring an additional 2,707 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted 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 in the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.