Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Purchases Shares of 3,164 Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,164 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SCL. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Stepan by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,541 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of Stepan by 1.9% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 10,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $898,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in Stepan by 5.6% during the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,210 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Stepan by 43.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in Stepan by 2.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $811,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 17th.

Stepan Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of SCL stock opened at $76.90 on Monday. Stepan has a fifty-two week low of $69.78 and a fifty-two week high of $96.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.48. The company has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.26 and a beta of 0.81.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $546.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.23 million. Stepan had a net margin of 2.10% and a return on equity of 4.56%. Stepan’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Stepan will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Stepan Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This is an increase from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.63%.

Stepan 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.