Seaport Res Ptn Comments on Stepan’s Q2 Earnings (NYSE:SCL)

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) – Investment analysts at Seaport Res Ptn cut their Q2 2025 EPS estimates for Stepan in a report issued on Wednesday, February 26th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now anticipates that the basic materials company will earn $0.87 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.03. The consensus estimate for Stepan’s current full-year earnings is $3.55 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Stepan’s Q3 2025 earnings at $0.94 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.16 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.36 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.30 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.95 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.76 EPS.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.33). Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The company had revenue of $525.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $520.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis.

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

Stepan Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:SCL opened at $61.68 on Friday. Stepan has a 52-week low of $59.55 and a 52-week high of $94.76. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $63.27 and a 200 day moving average of $70.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a PE ratio of 27.91 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.21.

Institutional Trading of Stepan

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Stepan during the fourth quarter valued at about $7,545,000. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its position in Stepan by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 638,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,311,000 after buying an additional 108,556 shares during the period. Southernsun Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Stepan by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Southernsun Asset Management LLC now owns 383,685 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $24,824,000 after buying an additional 74,238 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Stepan by 409.2% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 92,053 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,111,000 after buying an additional 73,976 shares during the period. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in Stepan by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 921,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,634,000 after buying an additional 60,985 shares during the period. 82.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stepan news, Director Susan Lewis purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $63.53 per share, for a total transaction of $31,765.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This represents a 35.82 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.385 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. Stepan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.68%.

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.