MARA Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:MARA)

Posted by Brian Himes on Nov 6th, 2026

MARA Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA – Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders bought 321,997 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 53% compared to the typical volume of 209,807 call options.

MARA Trading Up 8.0%

MARA traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $6.35. 34,458,751 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 44,936,359. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $9.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.70. MARA has a 52-week low of $5.69 and a 52-week high of $16.62. 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 has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a PE ratio of -0.69 and a beta of 5.23.

MARA (NASDAQ:MARA – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The business services provider reported ($1.60) EPS 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $209.44 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 26.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MARA will post -1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Zabi Nowaid sold 8,376 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $100,512.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 898,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,785,360. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Frederick G. Thiel sold 27,505 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,149,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,175,682.15. The trade was a 0.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 134,396 shares of company stock valued at $1,311,490 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MARA

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

Key Stories 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

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MARA shares. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $11.00 price objective (down from $13.00) on shares of MARA in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on MARA from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings cut MARA from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 target price on MARA and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright started coverage on MARA in a report on Friday, September 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.78.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on MARA

About MARA

(Get Free Report)

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.