Industry Stocks Rose 12.8% in First Six Months of 2013

The Publishers Weekly Stock Index rose 12.8% in the first six months of 2013, just slightly below the 13.8% increase posted by the Dow Jones Industrial Average in the January-to-June period. The stock prices of nine companies rose in the six months, while prices fell at four.

The biggest winners were surprises in an industry undergoing a digital transition—a retailer and two printing companies. Hastings Entertainment had the biggest gain, at 87.3%, even as the company posted mixed results since January. Donnelley and Courier Corp. had the second- and third-largest gains as both printers continued to revamp their businesses. As it did for a number of months so far this year, Amazon posted the largest increase in terms of dollars, adding almost $27 to its stock price in the six-month period; the e-tailer continued to rack up large increases in revenue even as its profits remained slim. Without a doubt, Barnes & Noble’s stock price was the most volatile in the January-to-June period. Even after its stock price fell 17% following release of weak fourth-quarter results in late June, B&N’s shares still were up 5.8% in the year to date. The country’s second largest bookstore chain, Books-A-Million, saw its stock price fall by one cent in the period. The biggest loser in the period was Educational Development Corp., whose stock price dropped 17.8%. The company posted a 43% drop in earnings for the fiscal year ended February 28.

During the period McGraw-Hill Cos. dropped off the PWSI when it sold McGraw-Hill Education to a private equity firm; starting in July the new News Corp., which split off from News Corp. and includes HarperCollins, will be added to the list.

Stock Prices, January-June, 2013