Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.00 and last traded at $19.07, with a volume of 94729 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $19.89.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Scholastic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 5th.

Scholastic Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $533.08 million, a PE ratio of 33.88 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.35.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.48). Scholastic had a net margin of 1.49% and a return on equity of 4.32%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Scholastic Co. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Scholastic’s payout ratio is currently -444.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Scholastic

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Scholastic in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Scholastic by 58.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the third quarter worth $243,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC acquired a new position in Scholastic in the 2nd quarter valued at $279,000. Finally, BOKF NA acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the 2nd quarter worth $299,000. 82.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Scholastic

Scholastic Corporation publishes and distributes children’s books worldwide. It operates in three segments: Children’s Book Publishing and Distribution, Education Solutions, and International. The Children’s Book Publishing and Distribution segment engages in publication and distribution of children’s print, digital, and audio books, as well as media and interactive products through its school reading events and trade channel; and operation of school-based book clubs and book fairs in the United States.