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
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 70 (better than 70% 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 61 (better than 61% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 77), and are safely financed (Safety Rank of 51), which means low debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 70, 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 61), above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 77), and indicate that the company is safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 51), 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
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360° Viewnew| Country | USA |
| Industry | Specialty Chemicals |
| Index | Human Rights, Renewables Users |
| Size class | Large |
19-Dec-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.
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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 |
|
61 |
|
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 39 |
|
33 |
|
7 |
|
77 |
|
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 40 |
|
92 |
|
79 |
|
51 |
|
| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | n/a |
|
49 |
|
53 |
|
new |
|
| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | n/a |
|
55 |
|
24 |
|
new |
|
Combined financial peformance in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 70 (better than 70% 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 61 (better than 61% of alternatives), show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 77), and are safely financed (Safety Rank of 51), which means low debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 70, 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 61), above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 77), and indicate that the company is safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 51), 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
| RESEARCH HISTORY | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 76 |
|
55 |
|
47 |
|
61 |
|
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 39 |
|
33 |
|
7 |
|
77 |
|
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 40 |
|
92 |
|
79 |
|
51 |
|
| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 42 |
|
62 |
|
30 |
|
70 |
|
Value Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 61 (better than 61% 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 76 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 76% 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 72. Finally, compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields of Stepan are expected to be higher than for 59% of all competitors (a Dividend Yield rank of 59). The only low rank is for expected profits with a Price-to-Profit Rank of 39, 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 61, 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 |
|
76 |
|
| PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E) | ||||||||
| PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E) | 77 |
|
50 |
|
16 |
|
39 |
|
| PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book) | ||||||||
| PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book) | 48 |
|
60 |
|
56 |
|
72 |
|
| DIVIDEND YIELD | ||||||||
| DIVIDEND YIELD | 60 |
|
41 |
|
51 |
|
59 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE | 76 |
|
55 |
|
47 |
|
61 |
|
Growth Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 77 (better than 77% compared with alternatives) for 2024, Stepan shows one of the highest growth dynamics in its industry. Investors also speak of high momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Stepan. Sales Growth has a rank of 96, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow more than 96% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 76 is also above average. But Capital Growth has only a rank of 34, and Stock Returns with 27 are also below-average. Stock returns for Stepan have recently been below 73% of alternative investments. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 77, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Are investors forecasting troubles based on the lack of operating investment activity at the company? This could be one explanation as to why stock returns are low. But stock returns can also be the result of correcting an error in the past, in this case, an overly optimistic outlook on the future, which is now more realistic. The Value Ranks may confirm such a picture. The more important growth indicators are revenues and profits, which are both above average for Stepan. This is a positive sign from the company's operational side and may give investors courage, despite the poor recent stock price performance. 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 the Obermatt Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more
| GROWTH METRICS | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| REVENUE GROWTH | ||||||||
| REVENUE GROWTH | 49 |
|
22 |
|
33 |
|
96 |
|
| PROFIT GROWTH | ||||||||
| PROFIT GROWTH | 78 |
|
32 |
|
20 |
|
76 |
|
| CAPITAL GROWTH | ||||||||
| CAPITAL GROWTH | n/a |
|
89 |
|
11 |
|
34 |
|
| STOCK RETURNS | ||||||||
| STOCK RETURNS | 36 |
|
21 |
|
29 |
|
27 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH | 39 |
|
33 |
|
7 |
|
77 |
|
Safety Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 51 (better than 51% 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 66, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 66% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 51, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 51% 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 35, 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 65% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 51 (better than 51% 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 |
|
66 |
|
| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 62 |
|
47 |
|
41 |
|
35 |
|
| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 40 |
|
84 |
|
82 |
|
51 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 40 |
|
92 |
|
79 |
|
51 |
|
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 |
|
Free stock analysis by the purely fact based Obermatt Method for Stepan from December 19, 2024.
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