Semanteon Capital Management LP Purchases New Stake in Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Semanteon Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 15,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,195,000. Stepan makes up about 0.8% of Semanteon Capital Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Semanteon Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.07% of Stepan at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Pullen Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Stepan in the third quarter valued at about $390,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Stepan by 924.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 82,901 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,404,000 after purchasing an additional 74,809 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Stepan by 7,700.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,190 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $633,000 after buying an additional 8,085 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stepan during the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Stepan in the 3rd quarter worth about $204,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.70% of the company’s stock.

Stepan Price Performance

Shares of Stepan stock traded up $0.87 during trading on Monday, hitting $73.47. 692 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 91,089. Stepan has a fifty-two week low of $69.78 and a fifty-two week high of $96.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.45 and a beta of 0.80.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.26). The company had revenue of $556.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $581.30 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 3.83% and a net margin of 1.58%. The business’s revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Stepan will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stepan news, VP David Kabbes purchased 1,056 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $71.39 per share, for a total transaction of $75,387.84. Following the acquisition, the vice president now owns 1,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,387.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 7.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Stepan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 28th.

About Stepan

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.