Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) Shares Purchased by D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL - Free Report) by 24.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 434,357 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 85,882 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned approximately 1.55% of Scholastic worth $9,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCHL. Corton Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of Scholastic by 98.4% during the fourth quarter. Corton Capital Inc. now owns 29,962 shares of the company's stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 14,859 shares in the last quarter. BOKF NA boosted its holdings in Scholastic by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. BOKF NA now owns 10,987 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 1,656 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Scholastic during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $404,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Scholastic by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 401,755 shares of the company's stock worth $8,569,000 after purchasing an additional 43,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury increased its holdings in Scholastic by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 16,384 shares of the company's stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 1,902 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.57% of the company's stock.

Scholastic Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Scholastic stock traded up $0.02 on Tuesday, hitting $17.96. 16,746 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 377,458. Scholastic Co. has a 52-week low of $15.77 and a 52-week high of $38.77. 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 stock has a market cap of $504.55 million, a P/E ratio of -99.74 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's 50-day moving average is $18.05 and its 200 day moving average is $20.84.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.78) by $0.73. The firm had revenue of $335.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $347.68 million. Scholastic had a negative net margin of 0.27% and a positive return on equity of 1.91%. Equities analysts anticipate that Scholastic Co. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.46%. Scholastic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

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.