Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest in Marqeta plunged 46.4% in June to 8.82 million shares, with about 9.5% of the float still sold short and a short-interest ratio of 1.8 days.
• Marqeta recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.02 versus an expected loss and revenue of $165.8 million, up 19.2% year over year.
• Insiders sold shares during the period, including Director Elaine Paul and CRO Todd Pollak, while analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $20.12.

Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 8,819,489 shares, a decrease of 46.4% from the June 15th total of 16,441,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,021,391 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days. Approximately 9.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Marqeta Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:MQ opened at $16.13 on Wednesday. Marqeta has a 12 month low of $14.80 and a 12 month high of $28.16. The company has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 403.35 and a beta of 1.31. The firm's 50-day moving average is $15.94 and its 200 day moving average is $16.62.

Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $165.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.30 million. Marqeta had a net margin of 0.33% and a return on equity of 0.27%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marqeta will post 0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elaine Paul sold 4,537 shares of Marqeta stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.20, for a total transaction of $68,962.40. Following the sale, the director owned 8,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $135,280. This trade represents a 33.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CRO Todd Pollak sold 18,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.88, for a total value of $316,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 185,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,122,935.04. The trade was a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 27,650 shares of company stock valued at $463,473 in the last quarter. 12.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marqeta

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marqeta during the first quarter valued at $57,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Marqeta by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 279,103 shares of the company's stock worth $1,150,000 after buying an additional 9,319 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Marqeta by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 925,547 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,813,000 after buying an additional 65,313 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Marqeta by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 288,114 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,187,000 after buying an additional 52,219 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Marqeta by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,268,848 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,547,000 after buying an additional 471,631 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on MQ. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Marqeta in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Marqeta from $4.50 to $18.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marqeta from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $20.12.

About Marqeta

Marqeta is a modern card issuing and payment processing platform that enables businesses to design, launch and manage customized payment cards. The company offers a fully programmable open API that allows clients to create virtual, physical and tokenized payment cards with real-time transaction controls and dynamic spend limits. By leveraging Marqeta's infrastructure, companies can streamline their payment operations, reduce time to market and deliver tailored payment experiences to end consumers.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Oakland, California, Marqeta was established by CEO Jason Gardner with the goal of transforming traditional card issuance through cloud-native technology.

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