Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) Shares Up 1.8% – Should You Buy?

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) rose 1.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $11.22 and last traded at $10.56. Approximately 42,783,871 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 3% from the average daily volume of 41,666,266 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on MARA shares. Rosenblatt Securities cut their price target on Marathon Digital from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Marathon Digital in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Compass Point raised Marathon Digital from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Guggenheim began coverage on Marathon Digital in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $20.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.44.

Marathon Digital Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 5.34. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $10.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.15.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The business services provider reported ($0.32) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by ($0.06). Marathon Digital had a negative return on equity of 2.59% and a net margin of 100.82%.The company had revenue of $252.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $254.58 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. will post -1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Digital news, CFO Salman Hassan Khan sold 34,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.99, for a total transaction of $416,436.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 283,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,396,743.02. This trade represents a 10.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.77, for a total transaction of $296,228.85. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,555,489 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,292,616.53. The trade was a 0.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 155,474 shares of company stock worth $1,937,880 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Digital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 2,407.4% during the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 1,354 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Marathon Digital by 59.9% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,824 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. Estabrook Capital Management bought a new position in Marathon Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Marathon Digital by 56.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,819 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 375.4% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,534 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,001 shares in the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Digital Company Profile

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.