Pearson (LON:PSON) Stock Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average of $968.58

Pearson plc (LON:PSON) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 968.58 ($11.96) and traded as high as GBX 1,000.50 ($12.36). Pearson shares last traded at GBX 991.60 ($12.25), with a volume of 1,293,539 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PSON. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Pearson from GBX 1,200 ($14.82) to GBX 1,220 ($15.07) and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Barclays cut their price target on Pearson from GBX 975 ($12.04) to GBX 965 ($11.92) and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Shore Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Pearson in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd.

Pearson Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.19, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a market capitalization of £6.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,870.94, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.31. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of GBX 1,002.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 968.58.

Pearson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 21st will be paid a GBX 15.70 ($0.19) dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 21st. This is a boost from Pearson’s previous dividend of $7.00. This represents a yield of 1.63%. Pearson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4,339.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Graeme Pitkethly acquired 210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of GBX 1,037 ($12.81) per share, with a total value of £2,177.70 ($2,689.85). Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Pearson Company Profile

Pearson plc offers educational courseware, assessments, and services in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, other European countries, and internationally. The company operates through five segments: Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills, and Higher Education.