Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Share Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $33.24 and traded as high as $40.54. Scholastic shares last traded at $40.10, with a volume of 222,928 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SCHL. Zacks Research raised Scholastic from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Scholastic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings raised Scholastic from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, B. Riley Financial lifted their target price on Scholastic from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

Scholastic Stock Up 0.3%

The firm has a market cap of $871.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $37.72 and a 200 day moving average of $33.24.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.37) by $0.22. Scholastic had a return on equity of 2.47% and a net margin of 3.88%.The firm had revenue of $329.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $331.53 million. As a group, analysts predict that Scholastic Corporation will post 1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.26%.

Scholastic announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, March 20th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 23% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Scholastic by 458.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 2,593 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Scholastic by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 749 shares in the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Scholastic during the fourth quarter worth about $116,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Scholastic during the third quarter worth about $137,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Scholastic by 127.4% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.