Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Scholastic Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $24.31 and its 200 day moving average is $28.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $529.42 million, a P/E ratio of 33.64 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio is -444.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Scholastic by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 16,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $525,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in Scholastic by 6.4% in the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 11,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,135 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Scholastic by 58.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Scholastic in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 82.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Scholastic Company Profile

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.