Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) Shares Down 2.4% Following Insider Selling

Key Points

• CFO Salman Hassan Khan sold 34,732 shares at an average of $11.48 (reducing his stake by 12.26%), and the stock traded down about 2.4% to $9.69 on the news with ~45.2M shares changing hands.
• Several analysts have cut targets recently (e.g., JPMorgan to $13, Cantor to $21, Rosenblatt to $22), yet the consensus remains a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $23.50.
• Marathon has a $3.66B market cap, a P/E of 5.38 and high volatility (beta 5.42), and it recently missed quarterly EPS estimates (‑$0.32 vs. ‑$0.26) with analysts forecasting about ‑1.04 EPS for the year.

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) was down 2.4% during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $9.61 and last traded at $9.69. Approximately 45,216,823 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 46,225,090 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.93.

Specifically, CFO Salman Hassan Khan sold 34,732 shares of Marathon Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.48, for a total value of $398,723.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 248,566 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,853,537.68. This trade represents a 12.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MARA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Marathon Digital from $20.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Marathon Digital in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on Marathon Digital from $30.00 to $21.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Marathon Digital in a research note on Monday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Digital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $23.50.

Marathon Digital Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 5.42. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $15.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.08. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The business services provider reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.26) by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $252.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $254.58 million. Marathon Digital had a negative return on equity of 2.59% and a net margin of 100.82%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. will post -1.04 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Digital

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Marathon Digital by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,286,074 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,846,000 after acquiring an additional 177,771 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Digital by 77.4% during the 2nd quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 579,571 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,088,000 after acquiring an additional 252,864 shares during the period. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust increased its stake in Marathon Digital by 91.3% in the 2nd quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 347,214 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,444,000 after acquiring an additional 165,688 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Marathon Digital by 14.5% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 160,717 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,848,000 after purchasing an additional 20,413 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Marathon Digital by 12.0% during the second quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 318,656 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,997,000 after purchasing an additional 34,100 shares in the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Digital Company Profile

MARA Holdings, Inc operates as a digital asset technology company that mines digital assets with a focus on the bitcoin ecosystem in United States. The company was formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc and changed its name to MARA Holdings, Inc in August 2024. MARA Holdings, Inc was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.