Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL)’s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $51.13 and traded as high as $51.92. Stepan shares last traded at $51.3070, with a volume of 79,859 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Stepan from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research lowered Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Stepan currently has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Stepan Stock Down 0.5%

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a PE ratio of -82.75 and a beta of 0.96.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.06. Stepan had a positive return on equity of 2.65% and a negative net margin of 0.61%.The business had revenue of $604.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Stepan Company will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.395 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Stepan’s payout ratio is currently -254.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 8.4% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 586,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,975,000 after buying an additional 45,520 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 209.1% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 160,874 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,674,000 after buying an additional 108,826 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 166.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 46,410 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,198,000 after buying an additional 29,017 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Stepan in the third quarter worth about $8,620,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 6.1% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,599,083 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $76,276,000 after buying an additional 91,746 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

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.