Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $4.48, but opened at $5.52. Marqeta shares last traded at $5.1050, with a volume of 2,707,133 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Marqeta from $5.75 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Marqeta in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a “hold” rating and a $6.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $5.00 price target on Marqeta and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Zacks Research raised Marqeta from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Marqeta in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marqeta has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.50.

Marqeta Trading Down 5.1%

The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -57.88 and a beta of 1.49. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $5.22 and its 200-day moving average is $5.38.

Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.01). Marqeta had a negative return on equity of 4.22% and a negative net margin of 6.74%.The firm had revenue of $163.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $148.37 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.06) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.7% on a year-over-year basis. Marqeta has set its Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Marqeta, Inc. will post 0.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Marqeta

In related news, Director Jason M. Gardner sold 31,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.26, for a total value of $197,985.02. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,367,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $96,199,754.98. This represents a 0.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CRO Todd Pollak sold 116,493 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.19, for a total transaction of $721,091.67. Following the transaction, the executive owned 364,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,256,409.75. This represents a 24.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 12.61% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marqeta

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Marqeta by 61.8% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 3,737 shares during the period. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new stake in Marqeta in the first quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marqeta during the second quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marqeta in the second quarter worth approximately $66,000. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marqeta in the third quarter worth $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.64% of the company’s stock.

Marqeta Company Profile

Marqeta, Inc operates a cloud-based open application programming interface platform that delivers card issuing and transaction processing services. It offers its solutions in various verticals, including financial services, on-demand services, expense management, and e-commerce enablement, as well as buy now, pay later.