MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) Trading Up 5.4% – Time to Buy?

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA)’s stock price shot up 5.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $11.88 and last traded at $11.64. Approximately 69,713,491 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 51% from the average session volume of 46,315,691 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.04.

Key MARA News

Here are the key news stories impacting MARA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bitcoin rebound supports MARA: Bitcoin reportedly climbed about 6% toward $81,000, a favorable catalyst for MARA because miners’ revenue and asset values are closely tied to Bitcoin prices. MARA’s substantial Bitcoin holdings and high operating leverage can amplify gains in the cryptocurrency. Why Is MARA Stock Surging on Friday?
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its outlook: Reports said Morgan Stanley doubled its price target for MARA, adding to bullish sentiment and helping reinforce the stock’s upward momentum. The upgrade was accompanied by broader optimism in Wall Street forecasts for the company. MARA Holdings Stock Jumps After Morgan Stanley Doubles Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Infrastructure expansion remains a longer-term catalyst: MARA has reported 35,577 BTC held as of June 30 and 70.3 EH/s of energized hashrate, while pursuing additional powered-land capacity in Texas. These initiatives could expand mining capacity, but execution, capital requirements and Bitcoin volatility remain important risks. Why MARA Holdings Stock Is Up Today
• Negative Sentiment: Rally increases profit-taking risk: MARA had already gained roughly 21% over the preceding month, potentially making the stock vulnerable to consolidation or profit-taking. Quiver also reported open-market insider sales by the CEO, CFO and general counsel, with no reported insider purchases in the past six months. MARA Holdings Just Rallied 21% in a Month

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MARA. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on MARA from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of MARA from $16.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $11.00 price target (down from $13.00) on shares of MARA in a research report on Monday, September 14th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of MARA in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of MARA in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MARA presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.20.

MARA Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $11.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.11 billion, a PE ratio of -1.45 and a beta of 5.32.

MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The business services provider reported ($1.60) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($1.77). MARA had a negative net margin of 429.71% and a negative return on equity of 26.05%. The firm had revenue of $174.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $209.44 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that MARA Holdings will post -1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MARA news, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 8,376 shares of MARA stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total value of $100,512.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 898,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,785,360. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Douglas K. Mellinger sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.00, for a total value of $112,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 231,618 shares in the company, valued at $3,705,888. This trade represents a 2.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 86,386 shares of company stock valued at $928,125 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in MARA during the fourth quarter worth about $39,492,000. Delta Global Management LP acquired a new position in MARA in the first quarter valued at approximately $5,064,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in MARA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,220,000. Compass Rose Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in MARA in the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,243,000. Finally, Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MARA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,000,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.53% of the company’s stock.

About MARA

MARA Holdings, Inc, formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc, is a digital asset technology company focused primarily on mining bitcoin. The company operates and supports computing infrastructure designed to secure the Bitcoin network by processing transactions and earning bitcoin rewards.

MARA develops and deploys large-scale data center and energy infrastructure for digital asset mining. Its activities include operating mining facilities, managing specialized application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) mining equipment, and pursuing energy and infrastructure solutions intended to support more efficient and scalable computing operations.