Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $35.41 and last traded at $35.2020, with a volume of 244258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Scholastic in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised Scholastic from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.00.

Scholastic Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.67. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.94. The stock has a market cap of $904.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -177.75 and a beta of 1.17.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $551.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $556.72 million. Scholastic had a negative net margin of 0.21% and a positive return on equity of 2.66%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Scholastic Corporation will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Scholastic’s payout ratio is currently -400.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Scholastic

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Scholastic by 879.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,159,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,741,000 after buying an additional 1,040,880 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in Scholastic in the third quarter valued at about $7,288,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Scholastic by 286.6% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 184,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,873,000 after acquiring an additional 136,903 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Scholastic by 160.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 157,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,972,000 after purchasing an additional 96,998 shares during the period. Finally, EVR Research LP lifted its holdings in shares of Scholastic by 58.7% during the 3rd quarter. EVR Research LP now owns 190,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,202,000 after purchasing an additional 70,270 shares in the last quarter. 82.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Scholastic Company Profile

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is a global company dedicated to children’s publishing, education technology and distribution services. The company’s core business encompasses three primary segments: Children’s Book Publishing and Distribution, Education Technology, and International operations. Through its publishing arm, Scholastic produces and distributes a wide range of children’s books, novels, nonfiction titles and classroom magazines under well-known imprints such as Scholastic Press, Graphix and Chicken House.