Stepan Company (SCL) will raise its quarterly dividend by 10.0 percent to $0.275 per share in 2019. This marks the 52nd consecutive year of dividend increases by the specialty chemicals company.

The first dividend of $0.275 per share is payable on December 13, 2019, to common stockholders of record on November 29, 2019. A new annual rate of $1.10 per share yields 1.1% at a stock price of $95.68.

Stepan Company and its subsidiaries produce specialty and intermediate chemicals, which are sold to other manufacturers and used in a variety of end products. The company has three reportable segments: Surfactants, Polymers and Specialty Products. Surfactants are the basic cleaning agent in detergents for washing clothes, dishes, carpets, fine fabrics, floors and walls and are also used in personal care products and commercial and industrial applications. Polymers are used in the manufacture of construction materials, coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers (CASE) applications. Specialty Products are chemicals used in food, flavoring, nutritional supplement and pharmaceutical applications. Stepan, headquartered in Northfield, Illinois, operates production facilities located in North and South America, Europe and Asia. Stepan went public in 1961.