John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (NYSE:WLYB) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest fell by 32.4% in March to 2,573 shares (reported as 0.0% of the company's stock shorted), with a days-to-cover ratio of about 1.2 days based on average daily volume.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: EPS of $0.97 vs. $0.86 consensus and revenue of $410.04M vs. $391M, with return on equity of 28.38% and a net margin of 9.24%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.355 per share (annualized $1.42), with an ex-dividend date of April 7 and a yield of about 3.6%.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (NYSE:WLYB - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,573 shares, a decline of 32.4% from the March 15th total of 3,804 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,167 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of John Wiley & Sons in a report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, John Wiley & Sons currently has an average rating of "Hold".

John Wiley & Sons Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WLYB traded up $1.21 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $39.21. The stock had a trading volume of 149 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,931. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.59. John Wiley & Sons has a 12-month low of $29.16 and a 12-month high of $45.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $34.43 and a 200-day moving average of $34.65. The company has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.66 and a beta of 0.58.

John Wiley & Sons (NYSE:WLYB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $410.04 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.00 million. John Wiley & Sons had a return on equity of 28.38% and a net margin of 9.24%.

John Wiley & Sons Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a $1.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. John Wiley & Sons's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.48%.

About John Wiley & Sons

John Wiley & Sons, Inc is a global publishing and knowledge services company headquartered in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1807, Wiley has established itself as a leading provider of scholarly, educational and professional content across scientific, technical, medical and academic disciplines. The company leverages both print and digital platforms to deliver peer-reviewed journals, books, reference works and online resources to researchers, educators, students and professionals around the world.

Wiley's operations are organized into key segments, including Research Publishing, which publishes over 1,600 peer-reviewed journals and a broad suite of digital books; Academic and Professional Learning, which offers course materials, interactive digital platforms and certification programs; and Education Solutions, providing custom learning environments, online degree programs and professional development services.

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