Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Scholastic shares crossed above their 200-day moving average, reaching $42.16 before closing at $41.43, compared with the $39.76 average.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Scholastic has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $42, with recent downgrades from Zacks Research and other firms.
• The company exceeded quarterly EPS expectations ($2.19 versus $2.16) but missed revenue estimates, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.25 from $0.20.

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL - Get Free Report) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $39.76 and traded as high as $42.16. Scholastic shares last traded at $41.43, with a volume of 224,330 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on SCHL. Zacks Research cut shares of Scholastic from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Scholastic from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. B. Riley Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Scholastic from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Scholastic from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Scholastic currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $42.00.

Scholastic Trading Down 0.4%

The stock has a market capitalization of $781.37 million, a PE ratio of 17.71, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $43.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.23.

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

Scholastic Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This is a boost from Scholastic's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Scholastic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Scholastic news, Director Kaya Henderson sold 3,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.25, for a total transaction of $130,812.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at $286,298.25. This trade represents a 31.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 8.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Scholastic

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Scholastic by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,851 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Scholastic by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 23,186 shares of the company's stock worth $906,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in Scholastic by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 20,829 shares of the company's stock worth $617,000 after purchasing an additional 824 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Scholastic in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in Scholastic by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 80,195 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,682,000 after buying an additional 1,509 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.57% of the company's stock.

Scholastic Company Profile

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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