6,595 Shares in Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Acquired by Inceptionr LLC

Inceptionr LLC bought a new position in Stepan (NYSE:SCL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,595 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Stepan by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Stepan by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Stepan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $161,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Stepan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $168,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Stepan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $170,000. 82.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Stepan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stepan

In other Stepan news, Director Susan Lewis bought 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at $120,452.88. This trade represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Stepan Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of SCL opened at $58.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Stepan has a 1 year low of $56.50 and a 1 year high of $94.76. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.40. The firm has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.66 and a beta of 0.82.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.33). Stepan had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 4.21%. The company had revenue of $525.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $520.97 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Stepan will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.385 per share. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.68%.

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.