Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $18.80, but opened at $19.98. Scholastic shares last traded at $21.10, with a volume of 188,342 shares.

The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.78) by $0.73. The business had revenue of $335.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.68 million. Scholastic had a positive return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 0.27%.

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -444.44%.

Institutional Trading of Scholastic

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Scholastic by 3.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 16,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 4.2% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 9,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 81,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,741,000 after acquiring an additional 860 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 58.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. 82.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scholastic Stock Up 15.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a market capitalization of $608.75 million, a PE ratio of -119.27 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.05 and a 200 day moving average of $24.14.

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.