Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.39

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 30th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of 0.385 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This is a positive change from Stepan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38.

Stepan has raised its dividend payment by an average of 9.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 56 years. Stepan has a payout ratio of 36.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Stepan to earn $4.08 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.50 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.8%.

Stepan Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE SCL opened at $74.40 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $75.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.85. The company has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.62 and a beta of 0.80. Stepan has a 1-year low of $69.78 and a 1-year high of $96.68.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.39. Stepan had a return on equity of 3.83% and a net margin of 1.58%. The company had revenue of $546.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.23 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Stepan will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP David Kabbes acquired 1,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $71.39 per share, for a total transaction of $75,387.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,387.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.