NEW YORK, May 14, 2026, 12:25 PM EDT
- MARA gained 5.8% by midday on the Nasdaq, rallying as bitcoin prices showed strength.
- First-quarter sales came to 20,880 bitcoin, dropping the company’s stash to 35,303 BTC.
- The next hurdle isn’t just about mining output—it’s seeing if those power assets actually translate into signed leases for AI and high-performance computing.
MARA Holdings, Inc. climbed 5.8% to $13.49 midday Thursday on Nasdaq, with traders shrugging off a wider first-quarter loss and eyeing the bitcoin miner’s move toward AI infrastructure powered by its energy assets. Bitcoin itself added 3.2%, trading near $81,472.
This shift is significant: MARA’s no longer just about mining bitcoin. Their recent figures point to a company tapping its bitcoin reserve and data-center capacity to bankroll a wider data-center push, instead of sticking to hoarding its mined coins.
MARA reported unloading 20,880 BTC in Q1, fetching an average $70,137 per coin and bringing in roughly $1.46 billion. The company closed out March holding 35,303 BTC—this figure factors in coins either out on loan or pledged as collateral. Production for the quarter reached 2,247 BTC, with management adding that no bitcoin was bought in that span.
No sugarcoating the accounting blow: Revenue slumped 18% to $174.6 million, down from $213.9 million the previous year, according to the latest quarterly filing. The red ink got deeper too—net loss ballooned to $1.26 billion, or $3.31 per share, mainly because bitcoin holdings had to be marked to market. That mark-to-market rule forces companies to revalue assets based on current prices.
Not everything in operations disappointed. MARA reported its energized hashrate jumped 33%, reaching 72.2 exahashes per second. Still, the company’s owned sites saw purchased energy costs per bitcoin increase to $40,047 from $35,728. Bigger scale, same pressure on costs.
Marathon Digital’s headline play right now: a planned $1.5 billion buyout of Long Ridge Energy & Power, debt and all. Long Ridge brings more than just its gas-fired plant in Hannibal, Ohio—over 1,600 acres come with the deal, ground MARA wants for a sprawling data-center complex. CEO Fred Thiel told Reuters the location checks every box for the company’s ambitions.
MARA is pitching the Long Ridge deal as a play on high-performance computing—think clusters built to handle AI and other intensive jobs. Back in April, MARA said the site could eventually reach over 1 gigawatt of potential power. The first phase, focused on AI and critical IT workloads, is slated for mid-2028.
Chris Brendler at Rosenblatt is sticking with his Buy rating and $15 target, Blockspace reports, after what he called a “materially better than expected” quarter. Still, he flagged that sharply higher expenses “largely offset” the upside. Rosenblatt highlighted gains in mining output, but also flagged increased general and administrative costs as MARA pivots toward AI and HPC. Blockspace Media
A boost from the wider mining sector played a role. IREN jumped 8.3% and Cipher Digital added 4.8%. Riot Platforms, on the other hand, barely budged. The divide highlights investors’ preference for miners pitching more defined AI-infrastructure stories over those leaning solely on bitcoin.
Financing remains a sticking point. Polymarket traders see almost no chance—98%—that the Federal Reserve moves at its June meeting, and they’re pricing in a 72% chance there won’t be any rate cuts in 2026 either. For large-scale power and data center builds, that’s not nothing.
Execution is where it could trip up. MARA still needs a green light from regulators for Long Ridge—antitrust clearances, plus a nod from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The company’s also after noteholder approval on $600 million in Long Ridge senior secured notes. If tenant deals drag out, bitcoin slumps again, or capital remains tight, MARA may be pushed to sell more bitcoin or ramp up borrowing.
Right now, traders are reading MARA as more than just another miner. What matters next: locked-in leases and firm megawatt contracts—bigger hashrate or bitcoin rallies won’t cut it alone.
