MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) Stock Price Down 3.2% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• MARA shares fell 3.2% to $7.02 in midday trading, with volume below its average. The stock remains well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• The company reported disappointing quarterly results, including a $1.60 adjusted loss per share versus expectations for $0.17 in earnings, while revenue declined 26.7% year over year to $174.88 million.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: seven analysts rate MARA a Buy and three rate it a Sell, resulting in a consensus “Hold” rating and a $17.78 price target. Insiders sold more than 106,000 shares during the past quarter under pre-arranged trading plans.

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA - Get Free Report) fell 3.2% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $7.01 and last traded at $7.02. Approximately 33,714,171 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 45,272,930 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.25.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of MARA in a report on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 price objective on MARA and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on MARA from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $11.00 price objective (down from $13.00) on shares of MARA in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $11.00 target price (down from $13.00) on shares of MARA in a research note on Tuesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.78.

MARA Stock Down 3.2%

The firm has a market cap of $2.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.77 and a beta of 5.33. The business's 50 day moving average price is $10.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

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

Insider Activity at MARA

In other MARA news, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 8,376 shares of MARA stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total value of $100,512.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 898,780 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,785,360. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Salman Khan sold 16,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.21, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 4.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 106,891 shares of company stock worth $1,124,731. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MARA

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MARA. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in MARA by 1,154.9% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,422 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares in the last quarter. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new stake in MARA in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in MARA by 128.0% in the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 3,651 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in MARA by 300.0% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 4,000 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of MARA by 58.2% in the third quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 4,009 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 1,475 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.53% of the company's stock.

About MARA

MARA Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: MARA, formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, is a digital asset mining and energy infrastructure company. Its primary business is securing the Bitcoin network by operating specialized computing equipment that validates transactions and earns Bitcoin rewards.

The company develops and operates data centers and digital asset computing infrastructure, while also pursuing strategies to access low-cost and surplus energy. MARA has expanded its operations through a combination of owned facilities, hosting arrangements and acquisitions, with activities spanning North America and other international markets.

The company was founded in 2010 as Marathon Patent Group and later shifted its focus toward cryptocurrency mining before adopting the Marathon Digital name.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.