Stepan (NYSE:SCL) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

Stepan (NYSE:SCL) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.26), Briefing.com reports. Stepan had a net margin of 1.71% and a return on equity of 4.04%. The company had revenue of $556.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $581.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.53 earnings per share. Stepan’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Stepan Price Performance

NYSE:SCL traded down $4.48 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $80.15. The stock had a trading volume of 236,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 80,911. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.87 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $85.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.38. Stepan has a one year low of $63.60 and a one year high of $96.68.

Stepan Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Stepan’s payout ratio is currently 90.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Stepan Company 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.