MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) Stock Falls 5.5% - What's Next?

Key Points

• MARA shares fell 5.5% to $11.33 in heavy trading, near their 50-day moving average of $11.31 and below the 200-day average of $11.68.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: eight analysts rate the stock Buy, one Hold and three Sell, producing an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $19.20.
• MARA reported a substantial quarterly loss of $1.60 per share, missing estimates by $1.77, while revenue declined 26.7% year over year to $174.88 million. Insiders have sold 79,386 shares worth about $816,125 over the past 90 days.

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 5.5% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $11.30 and last traded at $11.33. Approximately 40,301,464 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 13% from the average daily volume of 46,185,477 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MARA. Weiss Ratings raised MARA from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on MARA from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $11.00 price target (up from $6.00) on shares of MARA in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on MARA from $16.00 to $13.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $15.00 target price on shares of MARA in a report on Friday, August 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MARA has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $19.20.

MARA Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $4.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.24 and a beta of 5.32. The business's 50-day moving average price is $11.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.68.

MARA (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The business services provider reported ($1.60) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($1.77). The company had revenue of $174.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $209.44 million. MARA had a negative net margin of 429.71% and a negative return on equity of 26.05%. The company's revenue was down 26.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that MARA Holdings will post -1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at MARA

In other MARA news, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.45, for a total transaction of $314,932.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,308,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $49,328,798.40. This trade represents a 0.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Salman Khan sold 16,000 shares of MARA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.21, for a total value of $147,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 377,066 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,472,777.86. The trade was a 4.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 79,386 shares of company stock valued at $816,125. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MARA

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MARA during the second quarter worth $161,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in shares of MARA during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,545,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new stake in MARA during the second quarter worth about $1,177,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in MARA by 14.9% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,320 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,598 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in MARA by 1,154.9% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,422 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares during the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MARA

MARA Holdings, Inc, formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc, is a digital asset technology company focused primarily on mining bitcoin. The company operates and supports computing infrastructure designed to secure the Bitcoin network by processing transactions and earning bitcoin rewards.

MARA develops and deploys large-scale data center and energy infrastructure for digital asset mining. Its activities include operating mining facilities, managing specialized application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) mining equipment, and pursuing energy and infrastructure solutions intended to support more efficient and scalable computing operations.

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