Stepan Company $SCL Shares Acquired by Dean Capital Management

Dean Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL) by 96.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 57,248 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,104 shares during the period. Stepan makes up about 1.2% of Dean Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Dean Capital Management’s holdings in Stepan were worth $2,861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Stepan by 206.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 521 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Stepan by 86.9% in the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 570 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Stepan by 700.0% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 688 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 602 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Stepan during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in Stepan in the third quarter worth about $43,000. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on SCL shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Stepan from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Stepan from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Stepan has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of Stepan stock opened at $57.55 on Monday. Stepan Company has a 52 week low of $41.82 and a 52 week high of $68.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of -92.81 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $54.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.50.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $604.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $612.25 million. Stepan had a negative net margin of 0.61% and a positive return on equity of 2.65%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Stepan Company will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.395 per share. This represents a $1.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -254.84%.

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.