Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Cuts Stake in Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP cut its stake in Scholastic Co. (NASDAQ:SCHL) by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,311,013 shares of the company’s stock after selling 81,371 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 8.18% of Scholastic worth $81,971,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the second quarter worth about $64,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the first quarter worth about $129,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the first quarter worth about $215,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Scholastic by 13.7% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. 82.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Scholastic Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SCHL opened at $29.67 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $837.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.46 and a beta of 1.03. Scholastic Co. has a 1 year low of $28.47 and a 1 year high of $41.79. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.31.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.66 by ($0.93). The firm had revenue of $474.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $552.50 million. Scholastic had a return on equity of 3.34% and a net margin of 0.76%. As a group, research analysts predict that Scholastic Co. will post 1.52 EPS for the current year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Warwick Peter purchased 1,674 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.46 per share, for a total transaction of $50,990.04. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 104,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,178,470.54. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Warwick Peter bought 1,674 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $30.46 per share, for a total transaction of $50,990.04. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 104,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,178,470.54. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Iole Lucchese bought 1,654 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $30.49 per share, with a total value of $50,430.46. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 74,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,264,309.36. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 18.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised Scholastic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th.

Scholastic 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.