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Dr. Charlie Tian is the founder and CEO of GuruFocus.com, a leading global investment research platform established in 2004. With a Ph.D. in physics, Dr. Tian transitioned from science to finance, applying a data-driven, disciplined approach to value investing.
GuruFocus Financial Strength Rank measures how strong a company's financial situation is. It is rated on a scale of 1 to 10 and is based on these factors:
1. The debt burden that the company has as measured by its Interest Coverage (current year). The higher, the better.
2. Debt to revenue ratio. The lower, the better.
3. Altman Z-Score.
4. Other debt related ratios.
A higher score indicates a stronger financial position, with companies rated 7 or above considered financially stable and unlikely to face distress. Conversely, a score of 3 or below suggests potential financial difficulties, indicating a higher risk of distress.
Stepan Co's Interest Coverage for the quarter that ended in Jun. 2026 was 7.45.
Stepan Co's debt to revenue ratio for the quarter that ended in Jun. 2026 was 0.25.
As of today, Stepan Co's Altman Z-Score is 2.60.
Stepan Co (NYSE:SCL) Financial Strength Explanation
The rank is rated on a scale of 1 to 10. A higher score indicates a stronger financial position, with companies rated 7 or above considered financially stable and unlikely to face distress. Conversely, a score of 3 or below suggests potential financial difficulties, indicating a higher risk of distress.
Stepan Co has the Financial Strength Rank of 6.
Stepan Co Financial Strength Related Terms
SCL vs STDN, ECVT, ODC: Financial Strength Comparison
For the Specialty Chemicals subindustry, Stepan Co's Financial Strength, along with its competitors' market caps and Financial Strength data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Stepan Co Financial Strength vs Chemicals Industry
For the Chemicals industry and Basic Materials sector, Stepan Co's Financial Strength distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Stepan Co's Financial Strength falls into.
Interest Coverage is a ratio that determines how easily a company can pay interest expenses on outstanding debt. It is calculated by dividing a company's Operating Income (EBIT) by its Interest Expense:
Z-Score model is an accurate forecaster of failure up to two years prior to distress. It can be considered the assessment of the distress of industrial corporations.
The zones of discrimination were as such:
When Z-Score is less than 1.81, it is in Distress Zones.
When Z-Score is greater than 2.99, it is in Safe Zones.
When Z-Score is between 1.81 and 2.99, it is in Grey Zones.
Stepan Co has a Z-score of 2.60, indicating it is in Grey Zones. This implies that Stepan Co is in some kind of financial stress. If it is below 1.81, the company may faces bankrupcy risk.
Warning Sign:
Altman Z-score of 2.6 is in the grey area. This implies that the company is under some kind of financial stress. If it is below 1.8, the company may face bankruptcy risk.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
Stepan Co (SCL) has a Financial Strength of 6 as of Jun. 2026. The financial strength rank measures the strength of a company's balance sheet based on revenue and debt. View historical data on Stepan Co and its competitors. This is 14% below median its historical median of 7.00. Over the past decade, Stepan Co's Financial Strength has ranged from 6.00 to 9.00.
Is Stepan Co's Financial Strength too high?
Stepan Co's current Financial Strength of 6 is 14% below median its 10-year median of 7.00. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 6.00 to a high of 9.00. Overall, Stepan Co has a GF Score™ of 79/100 and is considered Fairly Valued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Stepan Co's Financial Strength compare to STDN and ECVT?
Stepan Co's Financial Strength of 6 can be compared against companies in the Chemicals industry. Historically, Stepan Co's own Financial Strength has ranged from 6.00 to 9.00 over the past decade. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Financial Strength for a Chemicals company?
A good Financial Strength depends on the Chemicals industry context. However, Financial Strength should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Financial Strength mean?
A high Financial Strength can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The financial strength rank measures the strength of a company's balance sheet based on revenue and debt. View historical data on Stepan Co and its competitors. Stepan Co's current Financial Strength is 6, which is 14% below median its own 10-year median of 7.00. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Stepan Co stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Stepan Co (SCL) is currently considered Fairly Valued. The stock's GF Value™ is $69.65, compared to a current price of $65.17 — trading 6.4% below its estimated fair value. The current Financial Strength is 6, which is 14% below median its 10-year median of 7.00. Stepan Co's overall GF Score™ is 79/100 with 10 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Financial Strength calculated?
Financial Strength is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Stepan Co (SCL), the current Financial Strength is 6 as of Jun. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Is Stepan Co (SCL) Overvalued in 2026?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Stepan Co stock appears to be undervalued.
The current stock price of $65.17 is trading 6.4% below its estimated GF Value™ of $69.65.
GuruFocus considers Stepan Co to be Fairly Valued.
Key valuation signals for SCL:
Financial Strength: 6 (14% below median its 10-year median of 7.00)
GF Value™: $69.65 vs. price of $65.17 (6.4% below fair value)
No single metric tells the full story. See the SCL stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.
Stepan Co manufactures and sells a variety of chemicals and chemical-based products. The company organizes itself into three segments based on product type. The surfactants segment, which generates the majority of revenue, sells cleaning agents used in detergents, shampoos, body wash, fabric softeners, toothpastes, and other personal-care products. The polymers segment sells polyurethane used to manufacture rigid foam for thermal insulation, as well as phthalic anhydride used to make plastic components for the construction, automotive, and boating industries. The specialty products segment sells chemicals used in food and flavoring. The majority of Stepan's revenue comes from the United States, followed by France, Poland, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Mexico, and other countries.
79GF Score
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