MarketWise, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTW) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

MarketWise, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTW) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 25,509 shares, a drop of 24.7% from the March 15th total of 33,872 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 39,674 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.6 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 17,270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $15.19 per share, with a total value of $262,331.30. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 250,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,803,287.39. The trade was a 7.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Erik Mickels sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.70, for a total value of $88,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 79,064 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,162,240.80. The trade was a 7.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,000 shares of company stock worth $377,167. Corporate insiders own 29.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MarketWise

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in MarketWise in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in MarketWise by 52.5% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,199 shares of the newsletter publisher’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 757 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in MarketWise in the 2nd quarter worth about $226,000. Susquehanna International Group LLP acquired a new stake in MarketWise in the 3rd quarter worth about $191,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of MarketWise by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 19,899 shares of the newsletter publisher’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. 23.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of MarketWise in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.00.

MarketWise Price Performance

NASDAQ:MKTW traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $16.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 64,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,870. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.71. MarketWise has a twelve month low of $12.19 and a twelve month high of $21.74. The stock has a market cap of $263.71 million, a P/E ratio of 7.17 and a beta of 0.34.

MarketWise (NASDAQ:MKTW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 6th. The newsletter publisher reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.99. MarketWise had a negative return on equity of 2.54% and a net margin of 1.71%.The firm had revenue of $83.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.60 million.

MarketWise Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. MarketWise’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.67%.

About MarketWise

MarketWise, Inc operates a content and technology multi-brand platform for self-directed investors in the United States and Internationally. Its platform includes subscription businesses that provides financial research, software, education, and tools to navigate the financial markets. The company offers various investment strategies, such as value investing, income, growth, commodities, cryptocurrencies, venture, crowdfunded investing, biotechnology, mutual funds, options, and trading; investment research product portfolio through a range of media, including desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobile; and financial newsletters.