Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Trading Up 3.6% – Here’s Why

Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) rose 3.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $21.57 and last traded at $21.56. Approximately 17,584 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 220,784 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.81.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Scholastic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 5th.

Scholastic Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $599.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.09 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $24.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.06.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.48). Scholastic had a return on equity of 4.32% and a net margin of 1.49%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Scholastic Co. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -444.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scholastic

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC increased its position in Scholastic by 291.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 41,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,319,000 after acquiring an additional 30,699 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Scholastic by 40.7% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 52,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,681,000 after purchasing an additional 15,183 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in Scholastic during the 3rd quarter worth $243,000. Martingale Asset Management L P lifted its holdings in Scholastic by 128.1% during the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 49,529 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,585,000 after buying an additional 27,812 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Scholastic by 99.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 9,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 4,845 shares during the last quarter. 82.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Scholastic

Scholastic Corporation publishes and distributes children’s books worldwide. It operates in three segments: Children’s Book Publishing and Distribution, Education Solutions, and International. The Children’s Book Publishing and Distribution segment engages in publication and distribution of children’s print, digital, and audio books, as well as media and interactive products through its school reading events and trade channel; and operation of school-based book clubs and book fairs in the United States.