Cipher Mining (NASDAQ:CIFR – Get Free Report) and MARA (NASDAQ:MARA – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap technology companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, earnings and valuation.
Volatility & Risk
Cipher Mining has a beta of 3.2, indicating that its stock price is 220% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MARA has a beta of 5.33, indicating that its stock price is 433% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Cipher Mining and MARA, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Cipher Mining | 1 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 2.81 |
| MARA | 3 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 2.42 |
Cipher Mining presently has a consensus price target of $28.56, indicating a potential upside of 217.99%. MARA has a consensus price target of $19.10, indicating a potential upside of 153.65%. Given Cipher Mining’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Cipher Mining is more favorable than MARA.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Cipher Mining and MARA”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Cipher Mining | $223.94 million | 16.64 | -$822.24 million | ($2.86) | -3.14 |
| MARA | $907.09 million | 3.21 | -$1.31 billion | ($9.16) | -0.82 |
Cipher Mining has higher earnings, but lower revenue than MARA. Cipher Mining is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MARA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
12.3% of Cipher Mining shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 44.5% of MARA shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of Cipher Mining shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of MARA shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Profitability
This table compares Cipher Mining and MARA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Cipher Mining | -585.75% | -156.28% | -21.29% |
| MARA | -429.71% | -26.05% | -12.73% |
Summary
Cipher Mining beats MARA on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Cipher Mining
Cipher Mining Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development and operation of industrial scale bitcoin mining data centers in the United States. The company was incorporated in 2020 and is based in New York, New York. Cipher Mining Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Bitfury Holding B.V.
About MARA
MARA Holdings, Inc. operates as a digital asset technology company that mines digital assets with a focus on the bitcoin ecosystem in United States. The company was formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to MARA Holdings, Inc. in August 2024. MARA Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
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