Fact based stock research
Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

US8585861003

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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Stepan stock research in summary

stepan.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 60 (better than 60% compared with investment alternatives), Stepan (Specialty Chemicals, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Stepan are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 53 (better than 53% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 67), and are safely financed (Safety Rank of 54), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 60, is a buy recommendation based on Stepan's financial characteristics. As the company Stepan's key financial metrics all exhibit excellent performance, such as good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 53), above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 67), and indicate that the company is safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 54), it is a solid stock investment where the risk of paying too much for the share is limited, unless the company has a bleak future. Such good financial performance can indicate that the company's future might actually be challenging, as it may be difficult to maintain the good performance. If they are safely financed and have been growing above average, and are still a good value, it means that the market is keeping prices low, for a reason which may become clearer over time. We recommend evaluating the future of Stepan. If you believe the company's future is market-typical or even better, this could be an argument for a share purchase. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	53
Growth Rank	67
Safety Rank	54
Combined Rank	60

Country	USA
Industry	Specialty Chemicals
Index	Human Rights, Renewables Users
Size class	Large

14-Nov-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

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Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: Stepan

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	76	55	47	53
GROWTH
GROWTH	39	33	7	67
SAFETY
SAFETY	40	92	79	54
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	49	53	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	55	24	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 14-Nov-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 30-Jun-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Stepan is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	76	55	47	53
GROWTH
GROWTH	39	33	7	67
SAFETY
SAFETY	40	92	79	54
COMBINED
COMBINED	42	62	30	60

Last update of combined financial performance: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Stepan the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 53 (better than 53% compared with alternatives), Stepan shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, where three out of four indicators are above average for Stepan. Price-to-Sales (P/S) is 74 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 74% of comparable companies, indicating a good value for Stepan's revenue size. The same is valid for the Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Capital Rank of 68. Finally, compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of Stepan are expected to be higher than for 57% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 57). The only low rank is for expected profits with a Price-to-Profit Rank of 34, indicating that the market expects the company's profit to be low despite a high dividend. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 53, is a buy recommendation based on Stepan's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. The low Profit Rank could result from a one-off charge, for instance, for an accident, a legal settlement, or a restructuring project. If the company keeps its dividends high, the low expected profit may be transitory. If that is the case, the three good value ranks for Sales, Capital, and Dividends are reliable indicators for good stock price value, a low stock price. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	84	63	71	74
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	77	50	16	34
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	48	60	56	68
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	60	41	51	57
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	76	55	47	53

Last update of Value Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Stepan; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 67 (better than 67% compared with alternatives), Stepan shows an above-average growth dynamic in its industry. Investors also speak of positive momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below-average for Stepan. While Sales Growth ranks at 95, professionals currently expect the company to grow more than 95% of its competitors, while all other growth ranks are below the market median. Profit Growth has a rank of 43, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow its profits less than 57% of its competitors, and Capital Growth has a low rank of 38. Historic stock returns were also below average with a current Stock Returns rank of 41 which means that the stock returns have recently been below 59% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 67, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. If revenues are expected to increase, but all other growth indicators are negative, the company may be investing in future growth through means not visible in the balance sheet and thus not reflected in capital growth. The fact that Stock Returns have been below market doesn't mean that much, as it may be due to overly optimistic investor behavior in the past, which has been corrected to a more reasonable level recently. If that were the case, a positive Value Rank would be a reason to invest because the company is still expected to grow, while stock prices are now at a more reasonable level. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance isn't stellar here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	49	22	33	95
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	78	32	20	43
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	89	11	38
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	36	21	29	41
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	39	33	7	67

Last update of Growth Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Stepan.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 54 (better than 54% compared with alternatives), the company Stepan has financing practices on the safer side, which mean that their overall debt burden is lower than average. This doesn't mean that the business of Stepan is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with two out of three indicators above average for Stepan. Leverage is at a rank of 67, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 67% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 55, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 55% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the safer side when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is lower at a rank of 34, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 66% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 54 (better than 54% compared with alternatives), Stepan has a financing structure that is safer than that of its competitors. The refinancing issues could be a short-term problem, especially if the company has reputation issues. Banks and investors don't like to refinance debt if there are clouds on the horizon. For this reason, investors should look at the refinancing environment for Stepan. Does it look safe that debt that is coming due can be covered with new debt? If that is the case, then the financing situation of the company is on the safer side. If not, it may be better to wait until refinancing has been completed and the Refinancing rank is good again. Investors may have a short-term debt challenge with Stepan and should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	26	88	68	67
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	62	47	41	34
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	40	84	82	55
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	40	92	79	54

Last update of Safety Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Stepan and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	44	89	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	13	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	59	20	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	68	56	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	49	53	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 14-Nov-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Stepan.
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