Marqeta (NASDAQ:MQ) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $3.51, but opened at $4.01. Marqeta shares last traded at $4.24, with a volume of 4,839,128 shares.

The company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $0.05. Marqeta had a return on equity of 1.20% and a net margin of 2.86%. The company had revenue of $135.79 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $132.71 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on MQ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Marqeta from $5.00 to $4.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Marqeta from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Marqeta from $5.00 to $4.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Marqeta from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Marqeta from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $9.00 to $4.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.69.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marqeta

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Marqeta during the fourth quarter valued at $72,879,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Marqeta by 5,396.3% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,169,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,862,000 after buying an additional 17,838,535 shares during the period. RPD Fund Management LLC bought a new position in Marqeta in the 4th quarter worth about $37,289,000. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Marqeta during the fourth quarter worth approximately $19,717,000. Finally, North Reef Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Marqeta by 99.7% during the fourth quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 7,786,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,513,000 after acquiring an additional 3,886,999 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.64% of the company’s stock.

Marqeta Stock Up 21.1 %

The stock has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 212.50 and a beta of 1.52. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.40.

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.