Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) Shares Sold by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL - Free Report) by 26.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 119,922 shares of the company's stock after selling 43,402 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.43% of Scholastic worth $2,558,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Scholastic by 248.8% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 293,754 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,266,000 after buying an additional 209,524 shares during the period. Azarias Capital Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Scholastic by 71.8% in the fourth quarter. Azarias Capital Management L.P. now owns 467,783 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,978,000 after purchasing an additional 195,507 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Scholastic by 81.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 317,975 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,782,000 after purchasing an additional 142,954 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Scholastic by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 568,206 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,120,000 after purchasing an additional 66,027 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,295,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.57% of the company's stock.

Scholastic Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SCHL traded down $0.25 during trading on Monday, hitting $17.02. The company had a trading volume of 266,023 shares, compared to its average volume of 283,601. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.26. Scholastic Co. has a fifty-two week low of $15.77 and a fifty-two week high of $38.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $478.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -94.55 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

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

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Scholastic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 133.33%.

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.