Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Stock Price Down 5.1% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Scholastic shares fell 5.1% to $36.35, with trading volume down 62% from the average session.
• Analyst sentiment is cautious: Zacks Research downgraded the stock to “strong sell,” while the overall consensus rating is “Reduce” with a $42 price target.
• Although quarterly EPS of $2.19 narrowly exceeded estimates, revenue of $476.1 million missed expectations; insiders also sold nearly 295,000 shares worth approximately $11.7 million over the past 90 days.

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 5.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $36.48 and last traded at $36.35. Approximately 166,291 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 439,543 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on SCHL. Weiss Ratings cut Scholastic from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Scholastic from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, B. Riley Financial raised their price target on shares of Scholastic from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Scholastic Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $682.54 million, a PE ratio of 15.53, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.30.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.03. Scholastic had a return on equity of 5.29% and a net margin of 3.58%.The firm had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $517.06 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Scholastic Corporation will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Scholastic

In other news, EVP Iole Lucchese sold 289,624 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 289,623 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,515,410.48. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Andres A. Alonso sold 2,112 shares of Scholastic stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.28, for a total value of $85,071.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 21,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $853,492.92. This trade represents a 9.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 294,986 shares of company stock valued at $11,731,334 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.77% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Scholastic

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Scholastic in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Scholastic by 458.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,159 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 2,593 shares during the period. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Scholastic during the second quarter valued at about $115,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Scholastic by 127.4% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,197 shares of the company's stock worth $142,000 after acquiring an additional 2,912 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can bought a new position in shares of Scholastic in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $211,000. 82.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Scholastic

Scholastic Corporation NASDAQ: SCHL is a global company dedicated to children's publishing, education technology and distribution services. The company's core business encompasses three primary segments: Children's Book Publishing and Distribution, Education Technology, and International operations. Through its publishing arm, Scholastic produces and distributes a wide range of children's books, novels, nonfiction titles and classroom magazines under well-known imprints such as Scholastic Press, Graphix and Chicken House.

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