Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Stock Gets Downgrade from Zacks Research

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stepan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Stepan in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Stepan in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Stepan Price Performance

NYSE:SCL opened at $69.83 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 367.51 and a beta of 0.94. Stepan has a 12 month low of $41.82 and a 12 month high of $70.00. The business’s 50-day moving average is $62.88 and its 200 day moving average is $56.79.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $692.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $634.30 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.81% and a net margin of 0.17%. The firm’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Stepan will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stepan

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Stepan by 31.8% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 171,117 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,674,000 after acquiring an additional 41,244 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Stepan in the 3rd quarter worth about $405,000. Pullen Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stepan by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 41,270 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,574,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Stepan during the 3rd quarter worth about $222,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in Stepan by 307.1% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 49,768 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,105,000 after purchasing an additional 37,542 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

About Stepan

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL) is a global manufacturer of specialty and intermediate chemicals. Founded in 1932 and headquartered in Northfield, Illinois, the company develops products used by manufacturers in consumer and industrial markets.

Stepan’s principal products include surfactants, which are used in detergents, cleaners, personal-care products, agricultural formulations and other applications. The company also produces polyurethane polyols, phthalic anhydride and other specialty chemicals used in insulation, construction materials, coatings, plastics, food packaging and related industrial products.

Stepan serves customers across North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia through a network of manufacturing facilities, research and development operations, and sales organizations.