COMPANY JUNE 29 JULY 31 % CHANGE
A volatile stock market, which after several wild swings at the end of the month finished July down 1.5%, contributed to a 5.2% drop in the PWSI. Stock prices at 13 companies fell in July, while prices at only four companies rose. Amazon was easily the best performer in July, up 14.8%. The stock at the e-tailer, which has been up for most of 2007, received another boost in July when it reported second quarter results that were above analysts' projections. While Amazon's stock continued to rise, prices at competitors Borders and Barnes & Noble fell for the second consecutive month. And Harry Potter couldn't save Scholastic's stock from falling when fourth-quarter results came in slightly below expectations.
Source: Reed Business Information
Winners
Amazon 68.41 78.54 14.8%
Audible 10.08 10.66 5.7
Hastings Ent. 7.13 7.27 2.0
Losers
Educational Dev. Corp. 7.94 6.67 -16.0
Borders Group 19.06 16.36 -14.2
Barnes & Noble 38.47 33.55 -12.7
John Wiley 48.29 42.29 -12.4
McGraw-Hill 68.08 60.50 -11.1
Scholastic 35.94 32.18 -10.5
Publishers Weekly
Stock Index 534.56 507.81 -5.2
Dow Jones Aver. 13,408.62 13,211.99 - 1.5