Pearson (LON:PSON) Stock Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average of $964.02

Pearson plc (LON:PSON)’s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 964.02 ($12.00) and traded as high as GBX 996.80 ($12.41). Pearson shares last traded at GBX 990.40 ($12.33), with a volume of 1,950,716 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PSON shares. Shore Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Pearson in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Pearson from GBX 1,200 ($14.94) to GBX 1,220 ($15.19) and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Pearson from GBX 975 ($12.14) to GBX 965 ($12.01) and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th.

Pearson Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is GBX 999.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 965.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.19. The stock has a market capitalization of £6.76 billion, a PE ratio of 1,873.96, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.31.

Pearson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 21st will be given a dividend of GBX 15.70 ($0.20) per share. This represents a yield of 1.63%. This is a positive change from Pearson’s previous dividend of $7.00. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 21st. Pearson’s payout ratio is 4,339.62%.

Insider Activity at Pearson

In other Pearson news, insider Graeme Pitkethly bought 210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 1,037 ($12.91) per share, for a total transaction of £2,177.70 ($2,710.94). 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.