Insider Buying: MarketWise (NASDAQ:MKTW) Director Buys 20,100 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• MarketWise director Frank Porter Stansberry bought 20,100 shares on May 20 at an average price of $17.21, totaling about $345,921. The purchase lifted his direct holdings to 355,490 shares, a 5.99% increase in ownership.
• The insider has been actively buying shares recently, with multiple purchases in May and March, including a 41,375-share buy on May 8 and a 20,000-share buy on May 14. The repeated buying suggests continued confidence from the director.
• MarketWise also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.25 per share, or $1.00 annualized, for a yield of about 5.6%. The company’s stock traded up 1.8% to $17.99, while analysts currently rate it a consensus Hold.

MarketWise, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTW - Get Free Report) Director Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 20,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $17.21 per share, for a total transaction of $345,921.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 355,490 shares in the company, valued at $6,117,982.90. The trade was a 5.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Frank Porter Stansberry also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, May 18th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 3,623 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.50 per share, for a total transaction of $59,779.50.
• On Friday, May 15th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 11 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.71 per share, for a total transaction of $183.81.
• On Thursday, May 14th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 20,000 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.12 per share, for a total transaction of $362,400.00.
• On Monday, May 11th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 10,000 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.89 per share, for a total transaction of $188,900.00.
• On Friday, May 8th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 41,375 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.99 per share, for a total transaction of $785,711.25.
• On Friday, March 20th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 17,270 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $15.19 per share, for a total transaction of $262,331.30.
• On Thursday, March 19th, Frank Porter Stansberry acquired 23,103 shares of MarketWise stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.28 per share, for a total transaction of $329,910.84.

MarketWise Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of MKTW traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $17.99. 20,879 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 31,548. MarketWise, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.49 and a 52 week high of $21.74. The company's 50 day moving average is $17.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.12. The company has a market capitalization of $281.18 million, a P/E ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.25.

MarketWise (NASDAQ:MKTW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The newsletter publisher reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. MarketWise had a negative return on equity of 1.86% and a net margin of 1.29%.The firm had revenue of $77.03 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.74 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MarketWise, Inc. will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

MarketWise Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This is a positive change from MarketWise's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. MarketWise's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MarketWise

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in MarketWise by 36.6% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,174 shares of the newsletter publisher's stock valued at $509,000 after purchasing an additional 7,275 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in MarketWise by 60.7% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the newsletter publisher's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 773 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in MarketWise by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 152,631 shares of the newsletter publisher's stock valued at $2,293,000 after purchasing an additional 9,961 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in MarketWise by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,737 shares of the newsletter publisher's stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 1,414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in MarketWise by 52.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 23.04% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded MarketWise from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded MarketWise from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.00.

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.

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