Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) Short Interest Up 38.4% in May

Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,880,000 shares, a growth of 38.4% from the May 15th total of 12,920,000 shares. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Marqeta Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MQ opened at $5.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 278.50 and a beta of 1.53. Marqeta has a 52-week low of $3.37 and a 52-week high of $6.00.

Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.03. Marqeta had a return on equity of 1.20% and a net margin of 2.86%. The firm had revenue of $139.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $135.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.07) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Marqeta will post 0.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Marqeta from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $5.00 to $6.00 in a report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Marqeta from $4.75 to $5.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Marqeta from $4.50 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays upped their price target on Marqeta from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Marqeta from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.18.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marqeta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Marqeta during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Marqeta by 1,255.4% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 10,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 9,290 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Marqeta by 125.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 10,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49,243 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marqeta in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marqeta in the first quarter worth about $42,000. 78.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Marqeta

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.