StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) shares are moving higher on Friday after the company announced a share repurchase plan. Here's what you need to know.

What To Know: Under the plan, Stone plans to repurchase shares worth up to R$ 2 billion ($344.6 million).

The repurchase plan will replace its previous program, announced last year, in which Stone repurchased a total of 13,202,939 shares at an average price of R$ 20.45 per share, totaling R$ 1.03 billion.

"We are pleased to announce the completion of our previous R$1 billion share repurchase program, underscoring our robust financial position. As part of our ongoing commitment to maximizing shareholder returns, we continuously evaluate the most effective use of our resources," said Pedro Zinner, CEO.

"Confident in our long-term vision, we have approved a new buyback program to seize the current market opportunities. Furthermore, we are finalizing a structured framework to guide our capital allocation strategy, which will enhance transparency and align with our strategic priorities once shared with the market."

How To Buy StoneCo Shares

By now you're likely curious about how to participate in the market for StoneCo – be it to purchase shares, or even attempt to bet against the company.

Buying shares is typically done through a brokerage account. You can find a list of possible trading platforms here. Many will allow you to buy 'fractional shares,' which allows you to own portions of stock without buying an entire share. For example, some stocks, like Berkshire Hathaway, can cost thousands of dollars to own just one share. However, if you only want to invest a fraction of that, brokerages will allow you to do so.

In the case of StoneCo, which is trading at $10.29 as of publishing time, $100 would buy you 9.72 shares of stock.

If you're looking to bet against a company, the process is more complex. You'll need access to an options trading platform, or a broker who will allow you to 'go short' a share of stock by lending you the shares to sell. The process of shorting a stock can be found at this resource. Otherwise, if your broker allows you to trade options, you can either buy a put option, or sell a call option at a strike price above where shares are currently trading – either way it allows you to profit off of the share price decline.

STNE Price Action: At the time of writing, StoneCo stock is trading 12.2% higher at $10.41, per data from Benzinga Pro.

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