Pearson, PLC (NYSE:PSO) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Wall Street Analysts

Pearson, PLC (NYSE:PSO) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company.

PSO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pearson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Pearson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Pearson from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Kepler Capital Markets downgraded shares of Pearson from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Pearson in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th.

Pearson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PSO opened at $16.98 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.00. Pearson has a 52-week low of $12.02 and a 52-week high of $17.75. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.52.

Pearson Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a $0.1103 dividend. This represents a yield of 137.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This is a negative change from Pearson’s previous dividend of $0.2346.

Institutional Trading of Pearson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pearson by 26.4% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 224,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,572,000 after acquiring an additional 47,023 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Pearson by 3.4% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 40,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its holdings in Pearson by 44.9% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 24,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC increased its position in Pearson by 14.8% during the second quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 28,322 shares of the company’s stock worth $450,000 after purchasing an additional 3,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Pearson by 44.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,727 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.14% of the company’s stock.

Pearson Company Profile

Pearson plc is a global learning and education company headquartered in London, England. Through its assessment, qualifications, learning content and digital services businesses, Pearson supports students, educators, institutions, employers and governments throughout the education and workforce-development lifecycle.

The company provides academic and professional assessments, English-language testing, vocational and higher-education qualifications, textbooks, digital courseware and online learning platforms.