Is MARA Really Cheap After a 55% Crash? You Might Be Disappointed After Accounting for Debt

Question

[MARA Holdings]’ stock price has been cut in half this year, down 55%, but don’t be fooled by the surface numbers—the mining company’s trading price isn’t as “cheap” as it seems.

Let’s break it down: Yes, MARA does have $4.9 billion in Bitcoin on its books, but don’t forget it also carries $3.3 billion in convertible debt. Its actual net Bitcoin exposure? Only $1.6 billion. Yet its current market cap is $4.7 billion, which means the market is effectively paying a premium for its BTC holdings.

More importantly, over half of MARA’s stock price volatility actually comes from its complex capital structure—the company is playing with a fair amount of debt leverage. Compare this to MicroStrategy: MSTR’s capital structure is much more transparent, so investors looking to bet on Bitcoin exposure can do the math more clearly.

So before bottom-fishing mining stocks, it’s best to take a look at their debt sheets. After all, you’re not buying pure BTC—you’re getting a whole package of financial plays.

GasFeeVictim · Accepted Answer

Here we go again, piling up debt and still thinking about bottom fishing? A 55% drop is enough to dazzle people, but only when you look at the accounts clearly do you realize you've stepped into a trap.

ChainChef · Answer

nah this MARA recipe is way too seasoned with leverage debt... 49B btc looks juicy till you see the 33B convertible garnish, lol. net exposure only 16B? that's like claiming you cooked a full course when really you just warmed up leftovers fr

RuntimeError · Answer

This debt leverage is really intense—$4.7 billion market cap but only $1.6 billion actual BTC exposure. When you do the math, it’s not cheap at all.

ColdWalletGuardian · Answer

Wait, 4.9 billion BTC minus 3.3 billion debt only leaves 1.6 billion net exposure, and you still want to look at the 4.7 billion market cap? This is just playing leverage tricks.

SchrodingerGas · Answer

Here we go again—the hidden tax of debt leverage. Is the market still buying into this? MSTR is indeed much more transparent; at least you can clearly understand what you’re buying.