Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) Stock Price Up 1.9% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Marathon Digital shares rose 1.9% on Friday, trading as high as $14.11 before ending near $13.81, though volume was below its recent average.
• Analyst opinions remain mixed: several firms adjusted price targets and ratings, but the stock still carries a consensus “Hold” rating with an average target price of $18.38.
• The company’s latest earnings were weak, with a large EPS miss and revenue below expectations, while insiders have recently sold shares and analysts expect the company to remain unprofitable this year.

Shares of Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) were up 1.9% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $14.11 and last traded at $13.81. Approximately 39,911,772 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average daily volume of 46,446,102 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.55.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MARA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Marathon Digital from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price objective on shares of Marathon Digital from $11.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. HC Wainwright reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Marathon Digital in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Digital from $8.50 to $7.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Digital currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.38.

Marathon Digital Trading Up 1.9%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.48. 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 company has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.41 and a beta of 5.41.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported ($4.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($4.29). Marathon Digital had a negative net margin of 234.83% and a negative return on equity of 23.20%. The business 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 earned $1.24 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. will post -1.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Digital

In other news, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 42,090 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $505,080.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 1,007,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,084,564. This represents a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Salman Hassan Khan sold 16,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.68, for a total transaction of $186,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 441,066 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,151,650.88. This represents a 3.50% decrease in their position. 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 have sold 180,855 shares of company stock worth $2,033,654. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Digital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Marathon Digital by 56.8% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,819 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Digital by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,812 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in Marathon Digital by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 29,389 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares during the period. United Capital Management of KS Inc. lifted its position in Marathon Digital by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. now owns 40,054 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Finally, CI Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 13,520 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 44.53% of the company's stock.

About Marathon Digital

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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