Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

Scholastic Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SCHL opened at $31.88 on Tuesday. Scholastic has a 1 year low of $28.47 and a 1 year high of $44.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.33. The firm has a market cap of $900.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.99 and a beta of 1.02.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.66 by ($0.93). Scholastic had a net margin of 0.76% and a return on equity of 3.34%. The company had revenue of $474.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $552.50 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Scholastic will post 1.52 EPS for the current year.

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.17%.

Insider Activity

In other Scholastic news, EVP Iole Lucchese purchased 1,654 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $30.49 per share, with a total value of $50,430.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,264,309.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Iole Lucchese bought 1,654 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $30.49 per share, with a total value of $50,430.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,264 shares in the company, valued at $2,264,309.36. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Warwick Peter bought 1,674 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.46 per share, for a total transaction of $50,990.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 104,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,178,470.54. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 18.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scholastic

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCHL. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Scholastic during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Scholastic during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Scholastic during the second quarter worth about $64,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in Scholastic during the first quarter worth about $129,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Scholastic during the fourth quarter worth about $172,000. 82.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.