Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) Shares Up 5.9% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Marathon Digital Holdings shares surged 5.9%, reaching a high of $22.09 before settling at $20.73, with a trading volume increase of 4% over the average session.
• Analysts have mixed reviews on Marathon, with target prices varying significantly; JPMorgan cut their target from $22 to $20, while Piper Sandler raised theirs from $23 to $26.
• Marathon Digital reported a significant earnings beat with an EPS of $1.84, exceeding estimates by $2.13, while also achieving a 64% year-over-year revenue increase to $238.5 million.

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) shot up 5.9% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $22.09 and last traded at $20.73. 48,965,771 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 4% from the average session volume of 46,890,699 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.57.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MARA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Macquarie increased their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $19.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Marathon Digital in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.90.

Marathon Digital Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $17.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.09.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by $2.13. The company had revenue of $238.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $212.25 million. Marathon Digital had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a net margin of 85.02%.The business's revenue was up 64.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.72) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. will post -1.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.38, for a total transaction of $478,036.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,755,789 shares in the company, valued at $65,275,612.82. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Vicki Mealer-Burke sold 14,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.22, for a total value of $226,580.14. Following the transaction, the director owned 58,103 shares in the company, valued at $884,327.66. This trade represents a 20.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 177,093 shares of company stock worth $3,078,101. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Digital

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al lifted its stake in Marathon Digital by 20.6% during the third quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 28,100 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares during the last quarter. Paradiem LLC bought a new position in Marathon Digital during the third quarter worth $997,000. Plancorp LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Digital in the third quarter valued at $225,000. Generali Investments CEE investicni spolecnost a.s. acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Digital during the third quarter valued at $2,464,000. Finally, Sara Bay Financial grew its position in shares of Marathon Digital by 9.7% during the third quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 134,372 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,454,000 after acquiring an additional 11,890 shares during the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Marathon Digital

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.

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