Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA) is still in a good position to see further growth despite fresh declines for its stock this week.
The MARA stock is down about 4% as the crypto mining company’s market action mirrors that of Bitcoin (BTC-USD). A slip from highs of $27.00 on 2nd March has MARA around $22.82 with the company’s market cap shrinking to $2.34 billion.
Among the multiple research firms that issue recommendations on MARA stock is H.C Wainwright. The firm reiterated a Buy rating for Marathon Digital Holdings on Monday, 7th March. The analyst Kevin Dede reiterated a positive outlook for the stock and sees upside potential to $50 per share.
Dede points to February’s production update released on 4 March as having overshadowed Marathon’s Q4 2021 report. According to the report, a look at January’s and February’s combined production highlights the Bitcoin mining company’s current pickle.
A deployment delay around Marathon Digital’s Texas operation has reportedly impacted production. However, HC Wainwright says it “continue to see Marathon as a Bitcoin mining authority” and that despite misgivings about operational delays, MARA could be a top pick for investors yet to gain exposure to Bitcoin or Bitcoin mining.
Reiterating Buy and $50 target
The analyst looks at the quarterly estimates versus reported figures for December and notes the quarter saw Marathon record $60.3 million in revenue compared to an estimated $59.6 million. The quarter was up $2.6 million year-on-year and up from $51.7 million in the quarter ending September 30.
For the year 2022, headwinds around power plant maintenance, production weakness and a recalibration of expected BTC price have revenue and earnings per share cut. HC Wainwright now forecasts revenue of $536.2 million for 2022, down from their earlier estimate of $959.3 million.
EPS too is expected to fall to $1.98 for the year, down from $6.46.
But with Marathon’s hash expanding to 3.8 exahashes per second (EH/s) on 35,510 miners deployed, “scaled mining operations should deliver impressive results.” The mining giant targets 13.3 EH/s by summer and 23.3 EH/s by 2023.
In this light, Dede notes current challenges facing the company could be taken as “mere growing pains much like the power hiccup at Marathon’s Hardin, MT facility last year.”
In summing up its overview of Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA), HC Wainwright says reiterating a Buy rating and a $50.00 price target is within an “optimistic” view. This relates to the crypto industry’s 2021 bull market, with similar perspectives adopted across most other publicly-traded Bitcoin miners.
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