MarketWise, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTW) Short Interest Update

MarketWise, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTW) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 33,872 shares, an increase of 20.4% from the February 26th total of 28,122 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 17,365 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

MarketWise Trading Down 3.7%

NASDAQ:MKTW traded down $0.72 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.72. The company had a trading volume of 21,939 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,781. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $300.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 0.55. MarketWise has a 1 year low of $9.07 and a 1 year high of $21.74.

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

MarketWise Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 18th. MarketWise’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Erik Mickels sold 6,666 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.10, for a total transaction of $93,990.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 88,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,246,411.80. This represents a 7.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Frank Porter Stansberry purchased 23,103 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $14.28 per share, for a total transaction of $329,910.84. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 233,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,328,825.08. This trade represents a 11.00% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 26,000 shares of company stock worth $377,167 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 29.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MarketWise

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MKTW. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of MarketWise during the second quarter worth $28,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of MarketWise by 52.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,199 shares of the newsletter publisher’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 757 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MarketWise by 300.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 121,661 shares of the newsletter publisher’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 91,282 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP purchased a new stake in MarketWise during the 3rd quarter worth $191,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in MarketWise during the 2nd quarter worth $226,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.04% of the company’s stock.

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.