12 Best Dividend Kings to Buy For Safe Dividend Growth

8. Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL)

5-Year Average Annual Dividend Growth Rate: 7.69%

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL) is an American chemical manufacturing company, based in Illinois. The company mainly specializes in specialty chemicals for consumer and industrial purposes. It reported strong earnings in FY24. Adjusted EBITDA for the full year rose by 4% compared to the previous year, despite being weighed down by a number of one-time items and pre-operating costs tied to the company’s new facility in Pasadena. The Surfactants and Specialty Products segments posted solid double-digit growth in Adjusted EBITDA, though this was partially offset by softer demand in the Polymers segment. On a broader scale, global sales volume increased by 1%, supported by a 2.5% rise in the Surfactant business. The company noted encouraging momentum in Surfactant growth across several of its key strategic end markets.

Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL) also has a strong balance sheet, supported by solid cash generation. The company’s operating cash flow for the fourth quarter came in at $68.3 million, and its free cash flow amounted to $32.1 million. This healthy cash position has enabled the company to raise its dividends for 57 consecutive years, which makes it one of the best dividend kings on our list. Currently, it offers a quarterly dividend of $0.385 per share for a dividend yield of 3.18%, as of April 4.

At the end of Q4 2024, 17 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database owned stakes in Stepan Company (NYSE:SCL), up from 13 in the previous quarter. The consolidated value of these stakes is more than $27 million. Among these hedge funds, Gotham Asset Management owned the largest stake in the company in Q4.