Marathon Digital Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:MARA)

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Investors bought 323,022 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 34% compared to the typical daily volume of 240,303 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,512 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.70, for a total value of $431,938.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,278,309 shares in the company, valued at $67,169,451.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Salman Hassan Khan sold 16,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.70, for a total transaction of $262,190.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,103,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,022,547.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,512 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.70, for a total value of $431,938.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,278,309 shares in the company, valued at $67,169,451.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 91,417 shares of company stock worth $1,516,536. Company insiders own 1.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Digital

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MARA. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Digital by 121.1% in the 1st quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,269 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 695 shares during the last quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Marathon Digital by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 13,532 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Marathon Digital by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 22,359 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 881 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in Marathon Digital by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 70,974 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,430 shares during the period. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Digital by 2.9% during the second quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 66,561 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 1,845 shares during the last quarter. 44.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Digital Stock Up 4.8 %

NASDAQ MARA opened at $18.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 5.50. Marathon Digital has a 1-year low of $7.63 and a 1-year high of $34.09. The company has a current ratio of 3.75, a quick ratio of 3.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a 50 day moving average of $16.20 and a 200-day moving average of $18.35.

Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported ($0.72) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.49). The firm had revenue of $145.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.86 million. Marathon Digital had a net margin of 62.57% and a negative return on equity of 5.15%. Marathon Digital’s quarterly revenue was up 77.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.13) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Marathon Digital will post -1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MARA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Digital from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Marathon Digital in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $21.00 target price on the stock. Macquarie initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Digital in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 target price for the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Marathon Digital in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, B. Riley lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Digital from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.79.

About Marathon Digital

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc operates as a digital asset technology company that mines digital assets with a focus on the bitcoin ecosystem in United States. The company was formerly known as Marathon Patent Group, Inc and changed its name to Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc in February 2021. Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.