SCHOLASTIC CORPSCHL
SCHOLASTIC CORP Goodwill & Intangibles Disclosure
GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLES
Intangible assets with indefinite lives consist principally of trademark and trade name rights. Intangible assets with definite lives consist principally of customer lists, customer contracts/relationships, intellectual property, trade names and internally developed software. Intangible assets with definite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives. The weighted-average remaining useful lives of all amortizable intangible assets is approximately 8.4 years.
The Company assesses goodwill and other intangible assets with indefinite lives for impairment annually or more frequently if indicators arise. The Company monitors impairment indicators in light of changes in market conditions, near and long-term demand for the Company’s products and other relevant factors.
The following table summarizes the activity in Goodwill for the fiscal years ended May 31:
| 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Gross beginning balance | $ | 172.4 | $ | 172.3 | |||||||||||||
| Accumulated impairment | (39.6) | (39.6) | |||||||||||||||
| Beginning balance | $ | 132.8 | $ | 132.7 | |||||||||||||
Additions (1) | 64.2 | — | |||||||||||||||
| Foreign currency translation | 1.9 | 0.1 | |||||||||||||||
| Gross ending balance | 238.5 | 172.4 | |||||||||||||||
| Accumulated impairment | (39.6) | (39.6) | |||||||||||||||
| Ending balance | $ | 198.9 | $ | 132.8 | |||||||||||||
(1) Includes measurement period adjustments for the 9 Story acquisition which reflect a decrease to goodwill of $5.9 resulting from a net increase in the estimated fair value of the net assets acquired. The increase in the estimated fair value of the net assets acquired consisted of a decrease to deferred tax liabilities of $5.3, an increase to operating lease right-of-use assets of $0.3, a decrease to lease liabilities of $0.1, an increase to the property, plant and equipment of $0.1 and a decrease to the purchase price as a result of a working capital adjustment of $0.1.
In fiscal 2025, the Company completed the 9 Story acquisition which resulted in the recognition of $64.2 of Goodwill, net of measurement period adjustments, included in the Entertainment segment. Refer to Note 11, "Acquisitions", for further details regarding the acquisition.
There were no impairment charges related to Goodwill in any of the periods presented.
The following table presents Goodwill by segment as of May 31:
| 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Children's Book Publishing and Distribution | $ | 47.4 | $ | 47.1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Education Solutions | 75.7 | 75.7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Entertainment | 65.7 | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| International | 10.1 | 10.0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 198.9 | $ | 132.8 | ||||||||||||||||
The following table summarizes the activity in other intangibles included in Other intangible assets, net on the Company’s Financial Statements for the fiscal years ended May 31:
| 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| Other intangibles subject to amortization - beginning balance | $ | 8.2 | $ | 7.8 | |||||||||||||
| Additions | 85.3 | 6.0 | |||||||||||||||
| Amortization expense | (11.2) | (2.6) | |||||||||||||||
| Foreign currency translation | 3.5 | 0.1 | |||||||||||||||
| Impairments | — | (3.1) | |||||||||||||||
Total other intangibles subject to amortization, net of accumulated amortization of $50.3 and $39.1, respectively | $ | 85.8 | $ | 8.2 | |||||||||||||
| Total other intangibles not subject to amortization | 2.1 | 2.1 | |||||||||||||||
| Total other intangibles | $ | 87.9 | $ | 10.3 | |||||||||||||
During fiscal 2025, the Company completed the 9 Story acquisition which resulted in the recognition of $85.3 of amortizable intangible assets. Refer to Note 11, "Acquisitions", for further details regarding the acquisition.
During fiscal 2024, the Company acquired certain amortizable intangible assets related to educational programs for $5.8 and certain amortizable intangible assets of a U.S.- based children's book publishing business for $0.2. These intangible assets are amortized over the estimated useful life of 8 years and 5 years, respectively.
During fiscal 2024, the Company recognized an asset impairment of $3.1 related to certain education products that were not aligned with evidence-based approaches to literacy instruction. Refer to Note 4, "Asset Write Down," for further details.
Amortization expense for Other intangibles totaled $11.2, $2.6 and $2.2 for the fiscal years ended May 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
The following table reflects the estimated amortization expense for intangibles for future fiscal years ending May 31:
| 2026 | $ | 11.2 | |||||||||
| 2027 | 11.2 | ||||||||||
| 2028 | 10.7 | ||||||||||
| 2029 | 10.7 | ||||||||||
| 2030 | 8.8 | ||||||||||
| Thereafter | 33.2 | ||||||||||
About Goodwill & Intangibles Disclosures
Goodwill and intangible asset disclosures reveal the premium paid in acquisitions and how management assesses whether that premium retains its value. Since goodwill is no longer amortized under US GAAP, the annual impairment test is the only mechanism that adjusts carrying values downward — making the assumptions behind that test critically important for investors.
Key signals: a history of goodwill impairments suggests management consistently overpays for acquisitions. Watch the gap between reporting unit fair value and carrying amount — when fair value exceeds carrying amount by less than 10-20%, a small decline in business performance could trigger a write-down. For finite-lived intangibles, examine useful life assumptions across customer relationships, technology, and trade names; aggressive estimates inflate near-term earnings. Compare total intangibles-to-total-assets ratios against peers to assess acquisition dependency. Rising goodwill as a percentage of equity can signal balance sheet fragility.