Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC) Stake Reduced by Marshall Wace LLP

Marshall Wace LLP lowered its position in Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC - Free Report) by 72.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 300 shares of the company's stock after selling 794 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP's holdings in Graham were worth $262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graham by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 31 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Graham by 36.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 142 shares of the company's stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Graham by 44.0% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 144 shares of the company's stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Graham by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 182 shares of the company's stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graham in the 4th quarter valued at about $204,000. 93.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graham Stock Performance

NYSE GHC traded down $3.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $971.52. The company had a trading volume of 13,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,719. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a market cap of $4.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.02 and a beta of 0.91. Graham Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $683.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,003.53. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $933.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $919.00.

Graham (NYSE:GHC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $11.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $11.29 by $0.35. Graham had a net margin of 4.86% and a return on equity of 5.79%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.20 billion.

Graham Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 17th will be given a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 17th. Graham's dividend payout ratio is currently 5.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Graham from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd.

Graham Profile

Graham Holdings Company, through its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified education and media company in the United States and internationally. It provides test preparation services and materials; professional training and exam preparation for professional certifications and licensures; and non-academic operations support services to the Purdue University Global; operations support services for online courses and programs; training and test preparation services for accounting and financial services professionals; English-language training, academic preparation programs, and test preparation for English proficiency exams; and A-level examination preparation services, as well as operates colleges, business school, higher education institution, and an online learning institution.