Vanguard Group Inc. Trims Position in Marqeta, Inc. $MQ

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its stake in Marqeta, Inc. by 2.5% during the first quarter, now owning 8.57% of the company valued at approximately $178 million.
• Marqeta's stock is currently trading at $6.07, with a market capitalization of $2.72 billion and a twelve-month price range between $3.37 and $7.04.
• Recent analyst reports show mixed ratings for Marqeta, with three analysts giving a Buy rating and ten assigning a Hold rating, leading to a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.11.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ - Free Report) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,225,356 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,125,397 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 8.57% of Marqeta worth $178,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Marqeta by 125.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 10,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 49,243 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Marqeta during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Blueshift Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Marqeta by 23.2% in the 1st quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC now owns 12,400 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd increased its stake in Marqeta by 624.1% in the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 13,106 shares of the company's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 11,296 shares during the period. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Marqeta in the 1st quarter worth approximately $62,000. 78.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MQ. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Marqeta in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $6.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on Marqeta from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Marqeta from $4.50 to $6.50 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Marqeta from $5.50 to $7.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Marqeta from $5.00 to $5.75 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marqeta currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $6.11.

Marqeta Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MQ traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $6.18. 3,116,639 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,423,039. Marqeta, Inc. has a 52 week low of $3.37 and a 52 week high of $7.04. The company has a market cap of $2.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.54 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $4.87.

Insider Activity at Marqeta

In related news, Director Jason M. Gardner sold 2,250,000 shares of Marqeta stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.63, for a total transaction of $14,917,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 15,399,000 shares in the company, valued at $102,095,370. The trade was a 12.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CRO Todd Pollak sold 116,493 shares of Marqeta stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.19, for a total value of $721,091.67. Following the sale, the executive owned 364,525 shares in the company, valued at $2,256,409.75. This represents a 24.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 12.61% of the company's stock.

Marqeta Profile

Marqeta, Inc operates a cloud-based open application programming interface platform that delivers card issuing and transaction processing services. It offers its solutions in various verticals, including financial services, on-demand services, expense management, and e-commerce enablement, as well as buy now, pay later.