Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) Shares Up 3.4% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Marathon Digital shares rose 3.4% in Tuesday trading, reaching as high as $14.87 before closing around $14.28. Trading volume was slightly below average at 42.5 million shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with recent price target cuts from firms like Morgan Stanley and Cantor Fitzgerald, while Rosenblatt raised its target to $15 and maintained a buy rating. Overall, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $18.38.
• The company’s latest earnings were weak, with a quarterly loss of $4.52 per share versus expectations for a much smaller loss and revenue below estimates. Insiders have also been selling shares, though institutional ownership remains high at 44.53%.

Shares of Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) shot up 3.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $14.87 and last traded at $14.28. 42,506,834 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 8% from the average session volume of 46,409,188 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MARA. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Marathon Digital from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. HC Wainwright reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Marathon Digital in a report on Friday, February 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on shares of Marathon Digital from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Marathon Digital from $8.50 to $7.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Digital from $11.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Digital currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $18.38.

Marathon Digital Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.50 and a beta of 5.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $10.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.44.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported ($4.52) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($4.29). Marathon Digital had a negative return on equity of 23.20% and a negative net margin of 234.83%.The company had revenue of $202.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. will post -1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Digital news, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.18, for a total value of $252,495.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,788,954 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,962,597.72. The trade was a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 42,090 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $505,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 1,007,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,084,564. This represents a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 180,855 shares of company stock valued at $2,033,654. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Digital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 56.8% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,819 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 15.9% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,812 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 3.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 29,389 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 882 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 2.4% during the third quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. now owns 40,054 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $731,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CI Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 7.6% during the first quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 13,520 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Digital Company Profile

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc is a digital asset technology company specializing in the mining and acquisition of bitcoin. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, the firm employs high-performance application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) miners and proprietary software to secure the Bitcoin network and expand its crypto-mining footprint. Marathon Digital focuses on operational efficiency and scalability, while maintaining rigorous standards for regulatory compliance and corporate governance.

The company operates multiple large-scale mining facilities throughout North America, including sites in Texas, Montana and New York.

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