Stepan Company (SCL) Stock Analysis
Basic Materials · Specialty Chemicals · NYSE
Stepan Company (SCL) posted $2.33B in revenue for fiscal 2025 (up 7.0% year over year), at a 2.0% net margin, and has compounded revenue about 4.5%/yr over five years, per its SEC filings.
Data last refreshed August 2, 2026 from SEC filings · how we compute this
The analyst's take on Stepan Company
Stepan Company has grown revenue from $1.77B to $2.33B over the last 10 fiscal years, compounding about 4.5% a year. The most recent year was up 7%, so growth is actually accelerating.
Net margin sits at 2%, down 0.3 points year over year on a 11.6% gross margin. It carries about $626.71M of total debt.
At today's valuation the market is pricing in roughly 19.3% annual free-cash-flow growth — versus the -25.3% it actually delivered over the last five years, so the price already assumes a step-up from the recent record. The one thing worth a second look in the filings is heavy debt load.
Synthesised from Stepan Company's SEC filings — descriptive, not advice. Ask the analyst your own question →
Stepan Company revenue & earnings — last 10 fiscal years
| Metric | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.77B | $1.93B | $1.99B | $1.86B | $1.87B | $2.35B | $2.77B | $2.33B | $2.18B | $2.33B |
| Gross profit | $339.27M | $346.17M | $339.35M | $339.71M | $383.61M | $395.81M | $427.07M | $277.60M | $272.21M | $269.89M |
| Net income | $86.19M | $100.77M | $111.12M | $103.13M | $126.77M | $137.80M | $147.15M | $40.20M | $50.37M | $46.90M |
| Net margin | 4.9% | 5.2% | 5.6% | 5.5% | 6.8% | 5.9% | 5.3% | 1.7% | 2.3% | 2.0% |
Source: Stepan Company SEC filings (10-K). 17 years of history available in the interactive view.
Stepan Company: 2 potential red flags in the filings
Patterns in the filed statements worth a second look — computed and cited, not AI guesswork, and not a signal to sell. The kind of thing that hides in a 10-K.
- Heavy debt loadTotal debt of $1198.2M is 8.1× last year's operating cash flow — it would take years of cash flow to clear.
- Net margin shrinkingNet margin fell from 5.3% to 2.0% over ~3 years — profitability is compressing.
What growth is priced into SCL stock?
At today's market cap of $1.19B, Stepan Company is priced for free-cash-flow growth of about 19.3% per year for 10 years (assuming a 10% discount rate and 2.5% terminal growth, base FCF $25.37M from the FY ending 2025-12-31). For comparison, free cash flow actually grew -25.3%/yr over the last five fiscal years and revenue 4.5%/yr, computed from its SEC filings. This is a reverse DCF — a translation of the price into a growth assumption you can judge, not a fair value and not advice. Change the assumptions yourself in the interactive view →
Explore 17 years of Stepan Company financials — interactive
Full income statement, balance sheet and cash flow with CAGR and trend on every row, 48 quarters, valuation ratios, plain-English health checks, and Ask — our SEC-grounded research assistant.
Open the interactive view — freeOr start a 7-day free trial to track SCL in your portfolio →
Stepan Company financial history by metric
Compare Stepan Company with peers
About Stepan Company
Stepan Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells specialty and intermediate chemicals to other manufacturers for use in various end products in the United States, France, Poland, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Mexico, and internationally. 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, lubricating ingredients; emulsifiers for spreading agricultural products; and industrial applications comprising latex systems, plastics, and composites. The Polymers segment provides polyurethane polyols that are used in the manufacture of rigid foam for thermal insulation in the construction industry, as well as a base raw material for coatings, adhesives, sealants, and elastomers (CASE); polyester resins used in coating applications; specialty polyols, such as CASE and powdered polyester resins; and phthalic anhydride that is used in unsaturated polyester resins, alkyd resins, and plasticizers for applications in construction materials, as well as components of automotive, boating, and other consumer products. The Specialty Products segment offers flavors, emulsifiers, and solubilizers for use in food, flavoring, nutritional supplement, and pharmaceutical applications. Stepan Company was founded in 1932 and is headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois.
Stepan Company — frequently asked questions
What is Stepan Company's revenue?
Stepan Company (SCL) reported revenue of $2.33B for fiscal year 2025, up 7.0% from the prior year, according to its SEC filings.
Is Stepan Company profitable?
Yes. SCL earned net income of $46.90M in fiscal 2025, a net margin of 2.0%.
What is SCL's P/E ratio?
Stepan Company trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of about 0.0 based on the latest data in our nightly-refreshed cache.
How fast is Stepan Company growing?
SCL's revenue grew at roughly 4.5% per year over the last five fiscal years (compound annual growth rate), computed from SEC-filed statements.
How much debt does Stepan Company have?
As of fiscal year 2025, SCL carried roughly $626.71M in total debt (short- plus long-term borrowings), per its filed balance sheet.
What is Stepan Company's gross margin?
SCL's gross margin was 11.6% in fiscal 2025 — gross profit of $269.89M on revenue of $2.33B.
What is Stepan Company's market cap?
Stepan Company (SCL) has a market capitalization of about $1.19B, based on the latest data in our nightly-refreshed cache.
When does Stepan Company's fiscal year end?
SCL's fiscal year ends in December. Its most recent annual filing covers the fiscal year ending 2025-12-31.
What growth is priced into SCL stock?
At today's market cap of $1.19B, Stepan Company is priced for free-cash-flow growth of about 19.3% per year for 10 years (assuming a 10% discount rate and 2.5% terminal growth, base FCF $25.37M from the FY ending 2025-12-31). For comparison, free cash flow actually grew -25.3%/yr over the last five fiscal years and revenue 4.5%/yr, computed from its SEC filings.
Where does this data come from?
All figures are computed from Stepan Company's official SEC filings (10-K and 10-Q), covering 17 years of history, refreshed nightly. stockportfolio.pro does not provide investment advice.