Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL) Short Interest Update

Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ:SCHL) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 2,424,201 shares, a growth of 42.4% from the January 15th total of 1,702,064 shares. Currently, 10.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 388,982 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.2 days. Based on an average daily volume of 388,982 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.2 days. Currently, 10.5% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Scholastic by 879.3% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,159,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,741,000 after buying an additional 1,040,880 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Scholastic during the 3rd quarter worth about $7,288,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC acquired a new position in shares of Scholastic during the 4th quarter valued at about $7,070,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Scholastic by 286.6% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 184,666 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,873,000 after acquiring an additional 136,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Scholastic by 160.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 157,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,972,000 after purchasing an additional 96,998 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.57% of the company’s stock.

Scholastic Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ SCHL opened at $34.09 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Scholastic has a 1-year low of $15.77 and a 1-year high of $35.98. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.04. The company has a market capitalization of $867.25 million, a PE ratio of -170.45 and a beta of 1.19.

Scholastic (NASDAQ:SCHL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.10. Scholastic had a positive return on equity of 2.66% and a negative net margin of 0.21%.The firm had revenue of $551.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $556.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Scholastic will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scholastic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. Scholastic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -400.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Scholastic from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Scholastic from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $37.00.

About Scholastic

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.