Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of SCL opened at $83.83 on Tuesday. Stepan has a one year low of $63.60 and a one year high of $96.96. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $85.46 and its 200-day moving average is $88.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.50 and a beta of 0.83.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.29. Stepan had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 4.04%. The firm had revenue of $551.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $575.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.71 EPS. Stepan’s revenue was down 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Stepan will post 2.73 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stepan

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Stepan by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,562,730 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $242,306,000 after purchasing an additional 14,038 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Stepan by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,201,133 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $113,568,000 after buying an additional 31,641 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in Stepan by 0.6% in the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 694,196 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $62,505,000 after buying an additional 4,424 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 5,436.3% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 516,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $48,854,000 after buying an additional 507,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Stepan by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 323,556 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,592,000 after acquiring an additional 25,570 shares during the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stepan Company Profile

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.