Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Reaches New 12-Month Low Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $59.55 and last traded at $63.53, with a volume of 11033 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $62.49.

The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.33). Stepan had a net margin of 2.10% and a return on equity of 4.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stepan

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Stepan by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,560,605 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $165,671,000 after buying an additional 25,841 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Stepan by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,310,760 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $84,806,000 after purchasing an additional 18,392 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Stepan by 1.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,195,187 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $92,328,000 after purchasing an additional 17,530 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Stepan by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 921,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,634,000 after purchasing an additional 60,985 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Stepan by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 660,048 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $42,705,000 after purchasing an additional 17,283 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Stepan Trading Up 0.9 %

The company has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.55 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $64.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.50.

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.