Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Shares Down 3.5% – Here’s What Happened

Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) dropped 3.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $18.42 and last traded at $18.38. Approximately 60,880 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 228,425 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.06.

Scholastic Trading Up 11.9 %

The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.05 and its 200-day moving average is $24.14. The firm has a market cap of $591.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -119.32 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.78) by $0.73. Scholastic had a negative net margin of 0.27% and a positive return on equity of 1.91%. The company had revenue of $335.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $347.68 million. On average, research analysts predict that Scholastic Co. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.80%. Scholastic’s payout ratio is presently -444.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Scholastic by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 45,646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $974,000 after purchasing an additional 9,293 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Scholastic by 30.6% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 19,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,000 after acquiring an additional 4,453 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Scholastic by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 530 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, J. Goldman & Co LP acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $18,892,000. 82.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.