Scholastic Corporation $SCHL Shares Purchased by CenterBook Partners LP

Key Points

• CenterBook Partners increased its Scholastic stake by 194.1% in the third quarter, ending with 41,208 shares valued at about $1.45 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 82.57% of the company.
• Scholastic’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations: it reported a loss of $3.63 per share and revenue of $216.8 million, versus analyst estimates of a $3.42-per-share loss and $224.69 million in revenue.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, equivalent to a 2.7% annualized yield. Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $35.

CenterBook Partners LP grew its position in Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL - Free Report) by 194.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,208 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 27,197 shares during the quarter. CenterBook Partners LP owned approximately 0.22% of Scholastic worth $1,449,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Scholastic in the second quarter valued at $120,724,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Scholastic in the second quarter worth $11,662,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Scholastic in the second quarter worth $11,417,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Scholastic during the second quarter valued at $10,442,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Scholastic by 62.1% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 174,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,817,000 after purchasing an additional 66,890 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Scholastic

In other news, EVP Iole Lucchese sold 289,624 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.76, for a total transaction of $11,515,450.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 289,623 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,515,410.48. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Andres A. Alonso sold 2,112 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.28, for a total value of $85,071.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $853,492.92. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 12.77% of the company's stock.

Scholastic Price Performance

NASDAQ SCHL opened at $37.17 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $701.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.08. Scholastic Corporation has a 52-week low of $26.38 and a 52-week high of $48.07.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The company reported ($3.63) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($3.42) by ($0.21). Scholastic had a return on equity of 5.00% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $216.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $224.69 million. Equities research analysts predict that Scholastic Corporation will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scholastic Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Scholastic's payout ratio is 71.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SCHL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Scholastic from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Scholastic from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. B. Riley Financial decreased their price target on Scholastic from $42.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Scholastic from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, October 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $35.00.

Scholastic Profile

Scholastic Corporation NASDAQ: SCHL is a global children's publishing, education and media company. It develops and distributes books, digital content, classroom magazines, educational technology and other learning materials for children, educators and families.

The company publishes fiction and nonfiction for children and young adults through trade imprints and recognizable series and brands, including Harry Potter, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Goosebumps, Captain Underpants and The Hunger Games.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.