Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Buys 7,542 Shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) by 238.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,706 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,542 shares during the quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd’s holdings in Stepan were worth $693,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Stepan by 110.6% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Stepan by 40.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,315 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Stepan in the 3rd quarter valued at about $170,000. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Stepan in the 4th quarter valued at about $239,000. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its position in shares of Stepan by 24.5% during the 4th quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 4,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stepan

In other Stepan news, Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 1,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This represents a 35.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 6.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Stepan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th.

Stepan Stock Down 1.8 %

Stepan stock opened at $47.60 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 21.54 and a beta of 0.97. Stepan has a 12-month low of $45.94 and a 12-month high of $94.77. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $59.33 and its 200 day moving average is $67.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $525.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $520.97 million. Stepan had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 4.21%. Stepan’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Stepan will post 3.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. Stepan’s payout ratio is currently 69.68%.

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.