Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $26.43, but opened at $25.57. Scholastic shares last traded at $25.57, with a volume of 487 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Scholastic Stock Up 1.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $756.68 million, a P/E ratio of 47.57 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $26.85 and a 200 day moving average of $31.11.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The company reported ($2.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.48) by $0.35. The company had revenue of $237.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $233.49 million. Scholastic had a return on equity of 4.32% and a net margin of 1.49%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($2.20) earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Scholastic Co. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Scholastic’s payout ratio is 142.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scholastic

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Scholastic by 291.6% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the third quarter worth about $243,000. Martingale Asset Management L P lifted its position in shares of Scholastic by 128.1% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Scholastic by 99.6% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 9,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $311,000 after buying an additional 4,845 shares in the last quarter. 82.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scholastic Company Profile

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.