Quantinno Capital Management LP Has $2.09 Million Position in Stepan Company $SCL

Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL) by 55.8% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,885 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 15,002 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in Stepan were worth $2,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Stepan by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $617,000 after acquiring an additional 859 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the first quarter worth $818,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Stepan by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,701 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $699,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Stepan by 4.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 66,301 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,649,000 after purchasing an additional 2,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of Stepan in the second quarter worth $495,000. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stepan Stock Performance

SCL stock opened at $64.69 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of -539.08 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $57.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.45. Stepan Company has a 1-year low of $41.82 and a 1-year high of $68.00.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.57. Stepan had a positive return on equity of 3.90% and a negative net margin of 0.11%.The company had revenue of $684.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.85 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Stepan Company will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $0.395 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $1.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Stepan’s payout ratio is -1,316.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SCL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Stepan in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings raised Stepan from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Stepan from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan 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.