MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) Shares Climb 8% – Time to Buy?

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA) traded up 8% during trading on Friday. The company traded as high as $6.42 and last traded at $6.35. Approximately 34,555,312 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 23% from the average daily volume of 44,936,359 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.88.

Key Headlines Impacting MARA

Here are the key news stories impacting MARA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FERC approved MARA’s roughly $1.5 billion acquisition of Long Ridge Energy & Power, clearing a key regulatory condition. The site includes a 505-megawatt power plant and acreage intended to support the company’s AI and high-performance-computing infrastructure plans; closing is expected in the coming weeks. FERC authorizes MARA’s acquisition of Long Ridge
• Neutral Sentiment: MARA transferred 1,650 BTC, valued in reports at about $132.8 million, to institutional platforms including Galaxy Digital and Copper. The move may relate to its evolving treasury and funding strategy, but the reports do not establish that the bitcoin was sold. MARA transfers 1,650 BTC
• Negative Sentiment: A recent report attributed selling pressure to insider sales, which can weigh on sentiment. MARA shares down on insider selling
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the FERC approval, MARA and other Bitcoin miners were hit by a selloff in AI-data-center-related stocks. Investors may be weighing the execution and financing risks of MARA’s costly shift toward power and data-center infrastructure. AI data center selloff hits Bitcoin miners

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MARA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 target price on MARA and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of MARA in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $11.00 price target (down from $13.00) on shares of MARA in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings cut MARA from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, HC Wainwright started coverage on MARA in a research note on Friday, September 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price objective on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MARA presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.78.

MARA Trading Up 8.0%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.69 and a beta of 5.23.

MARA (NASDAQ:MARA) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $174.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $209.44 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that MARA Holdings will post -1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at MARA

In related news, CEO Frederick Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.79, for a total transaction of $186,758.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,149,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,175,682.15. This trade represents a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.21, for a total transaction of $147,360.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 377,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,472,777.86. The trade was a 4.07% 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 134,396 shares of company stock valued at $1,311,490 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MARA

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MARA. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in shares of MARA by 55.9% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 86,449 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 30,995 shares during the last quarter. RHL Group LLC purchased a new position in MARA in the 3rd quarter worth about $123,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in MARA by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 44,682 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 9,191 shares in the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC purchased a new position in MARA in the 3rd quarter worth about $115,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in MARA by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 185,917 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,106,000 after buying an additional 3,335 shares during the period. 44.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MARA Company Profile

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.