MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts remain moderately bullish: Twelve firms rate MARA Holdings a consensus “Moderate Buy,” with nine buys, one hold, and two sells. The average 12-month price target is $18.90 versus a referenced share price of $11.98.
• Recent financial results were weak: MARA reported a quarterly loss of $1.60 per share, far below the $0.17 consensus estimate, while revenue of $174.88 million declined 26.7% year over year and missed expectations.
• High volatility creates both catalysts and risks: HC Wainwright initiated coverage with a buy rating and $20 target, while unusually heavy call-option activity suggested increased speculative interest. However, MARA remains highly sensitive to Bitcoin and broader risk sentiment, and insiders have sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $18.90.

MARA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of MARA from $16.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of MARA from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of MARA from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of MARA in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright initiated coverage on shares of MARA in a report on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $20.00 price target for the company.

MARA Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MARA opened at $11.98 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a PE ratio of -1.31 and a beta of 5.32. MARA has a fifty-two week low of $6.66 and a fifty-two week high of $23.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $11.25 and a 200-day moving average of $11.37.

MARA (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 26.05% and a negative net margin of 429.71%.The company had revenue of $174.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $209.44 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 26.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that MARA will post -1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting MARA

Here are the key news stories impacting MARA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New “buy” rating and $20 price target: HC Wainwright initiated coverage of MARA with a “buy” rating and a $20 target, implying approximately 66.9% upside from the referenced $11.98 level. The endorsement provides a fresh bullish catalyst, although the target is only an analyst estimate.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity: Traders purchased 344,399 call options on Friday, 65% above the average call volume of 209,071. The activity indicates increased speculative interest and potentially bullish positioning, though options trading can also contribute to short-term volatility.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention is elevated: MARA has recently become a heavily searched stock on Zacks.com, which may increase trading activity but does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals. Marathon Digital Holdings Is Attracting Investor Attention
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data appears unreliable: A report lists short interest at zero shares and a zero-day days-to-cover ratio, unchanged from a prior zero balance. This likely reflects incomplete or anomalous data rather than a meaningful shift in investor positioning.
• Negative Sentiment: Bitcoin and macroeconomic pressure remain headwinds: MARA recently fell alongside Bitcoin as oil prices rose and investors moved toward a more risk-off stance. Bitcoin miners have been declining more sharply than Bitcoin, highlighting MARA’s high sensitivity to cryptocurrency prices and market risk. Crypto Mining Stocks Fall Harder Than Bitcoin

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 8,376 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $100,512.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 898,780 shares in the company, valued at $10,785,360. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.25, for a total value of $391,946.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,562,009 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,008,628.25. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 109,386 shares of company stock worth $1,332,889. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of MARA

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MARA in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $161,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of MARA during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,545,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in shares of MARA during the 2nd quarter worth $1,177,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MARA by 14.9% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,320 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of MARA by 1,154.9% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,422 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares during the last quarter. 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.

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