MARA Stock Primed for 24% Surge as Bitcoin Shatters All-Time Highs—Wall Street Bets Big

Bitcoin’s record-breaking rally has Wall Street scrambling—and MARA Holdings (MARA) is catching the bullish wave. Analysts see a 24% upside as crypto miners ride the momentum.

Why the frenzy? Institutional FOMO meets retail euphoria, with Bitcoin’s latest ATH acting like a siren song for speculative capital. MARA’s stock, a pure-play proxy for BTC’s volatility, suddenly looks like a golden ticket to the casino.

Just don’t mention the last time ’can’t-lose’ crypto stocks cratered 80% overnight. This time is different—until it isn’t.

TLDR

• MARA Holdings (MARA) sees heavy call options activity with 60,951 contracts traded, 1.1 times expected volume
• Bitcoin mining stocks surge as Bitcoin hits new all-time highs above $111,000
• MARA reported Q1 revenue up 30% to $213.9 million but posted net loss of $533.4 million
• Company holds over 48,000 Bitcoin on balance sheet, facing $510.2 million unrealized loss from price decline
• Analysts set average price target of $20.21 with potential 24% upside from current levels

MARA Holdings is drawing heavy attention from options traders as Bitcoin mining stocks rally alongside the cryptocurrency’s push to new record levels. The company saw 60,951 call options trade, representing 1.1 times the expected volume.

The options activity centers on weekly calls expiring May 23rd. Strike prices of $16.50 and $17.00 account for nearly 12,000 contracts combined.

Implied volatility jumped nearly 4 percentage points to 82.53%. The put-call ratio sits at just 0.20, showing strong bullish sentiment among options traders.

Bitcoin broke through $111,000 this week, reaching fresh all-time highs. The cryptocurrency gained about 4.25% over 24 hours as mining stocks moved higher in sympathy.

MARA stock ROSE 5.05% to $16.64 during Thursday trading. Other major miners also climbed, with Riot Platforms up 3.73% and CleanSpark gaining 6.73%.

Mixed Q1 Results Show Growth and Challenges

The company reported Q1 2025 results earlier this month that painted a complex picture. Revenue increased 30% year-over-year to $213.9 million from $165.2 million in Q1 2024.

However, MARA posted a net loss of $533.4 million, or negative $1.55 per share. This compared to net income of $337.2 million in the prior year period.

The loss stemmed largely from Bitcoin’s price decline during the quarter. MARA holds over 48,000 bitcoin on its balance sheet, creating exposure to price swings.

An unrealized fair market value loss of $510.2 million hit results as Bitcoin traded 12% lower at March 31st compared to December 31st, 2024. This accounting treatment means the company’s losses could reverse if Bitcoin prices recover.

Adjusted EBITDA turned negative at $483.6 million compared to positive $542.1 million in Q1 2024. The metric excludes non-cash items like the Bitcoin revaluation.

Operational Improvements Drive Efficiency Gains

Despite financial headwinds, MARA improved its mining operations substantially. The company’s energized hash rate jumped 95% to 54.3 exahash per second from 27.8 exahash in Q1 2024.

Cost efficiency improved as well. The cost of revenue per petahash per day declined 10% sequentially, excluding depreciation expenses.

MARA completed construction of a 200-megawatt data center in Ohio. Half of the facility’s capacity came online during the quarter.

The company transformed its operational model over the past year. It moved from 0% owned and operated capacity to approximately 70% since early 2024.

Purchase energy costs averaged $35,728 per Bitcoin mined at $0.04 per kilowatt hour. This compares favorably to many competitors in the space.

Wall Street analysts maintain an “Outperform” rating on average across 15 firms. The consensus price target sits at $20.21, implying 24% upside from current levels.

The highest analyst target reaches $30.00 while the lowest stands at $9.50. GuruFocus estimates fair value at $23.13, suggesting 42% potential upside.

Bitcoin ETF inflows totaled $6.63 billion over the past five weeks according to Santiment. This institutional demand helps support the cryptocurrency’s recent rally.

MARA is scheduled to report Q2 2025 earnings on July 31st. Options traders appear positioned for potential volatility around that announcement date.