Pearson (LON:PSON) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average of $971.41

Shares of Pearson plc (LON:PSON) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 971.41 ($12.20) and traded as high as GBX 988 ($12.41). Pearson shares last traded at GBX 987.40 ($12.40), with a volume of 1,824,346 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on PSON shares. Shore Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Pearson in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Pearson from GBX 1,200 ($15.07) to GBX 1,220 ($15.32) and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Pearson from GBX 975 ($12.25) to GBX 965 ($12.12) and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th.

Pearson Stock Up 1.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of £6.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,863.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.19, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.73. The business’s 50 day moving average is GBX 1,005.73 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 972.27.

Pearson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a GBX 15.70 ($0.20) dividend. This is an increase from Pearson’s previous dividend of $7.00. This represents a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 21st. Pearson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4,339.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pearson news, insider Graeme Pitkethly purchased 210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 1,037 ($13.03) per share, for a total transaction of £2,177.70 ($2,735.46). 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Pearson

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.