We recently published a list of 11 Stocks That Will Go to the Moon According to Reddit. In this article, we are going to take a look at where MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) stands against other stocks that will go to the moon according to Reddit.

Saira Malik, Nuveen’s Head of Equities and Fixed Income, recently joined CNBC’s ‘Closing Bell’ on February 18 to discuss opportunities outside the tech sector and her outlook for the markets. She began by addressing the two primary factors driving markets this year: technology and tariffs. Malik highlighted that while tech stocks have dominated the narrative, recent developments, such as DeepSeek’s announcement, have raised concerns about the immense spending in AI and the uncertainty surrounding its monetization and returns. Malik emphasized looking beyond tech to areas like infrastructure. She mentioned utility companies as a promising investment. When asked about momentum stocks, Malik explained that the momentum trade has propelled markets over the past few years, with the S&P 500 delivering over 20% annual gains during that period. However, this growth was largely concentrated in the MAG7, which resulted in an S&P 500 valuation premium of 20% above historical averages entering this year. She noted that the momentum trade is now unwinding, partly due to inflated expectations around AI and the lack of productivity gains despite tens of billions of dollars spent in the space.

Malik pointed out that international markets are outperforming US markets this year. European markets, in particular, entered 2025 with a 40% valuation discount compared to US markets and have a more cyclical bias. She stated that year-to-date returns suggest investors would benefit from owning international equities. While she expects the S&P 500 to post about 7% earnings growth for 2025 (following a strong Q4 with 12% year-over-year earnings growth), she believes international markets may continue to outperform due to their discounted valuations and cyclical exposure. Malik concluded by emphasizing the importance of being selective in this market environment. She recommended focusing on smaller mid-cap companies with profits, lower leverage, reduced refinancing risks, or economic sensitivity. Sectors like financials could thrive if deregulation or increased mergers and acquisitions activity materialize. She advised investing in stocks with upward earnings estimate revisions rather than those facing downward adjustments to capitalize on current market conditions.

Methodology

We first sifted through threads and posts on WSB and similar subreddits to compile a list of the top trending stocks among retail investors. We then selected the 11 stocks that analysts were bullish on and had an average upside potential over 40% as of March 3. We also added the hedge fund sentiment for each stock, as of Q4 2024, which was sourced from Insider Monkey’s database. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of the number of hedge funds that have stakes in them.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

An aerial view of a bustling financial district, with skyscrapers and a large financial institution in the city center.

MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA)

Upside Potential as of March 3: 72.41%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 21

MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) operates as a digital asset technology company that mines digital assets. It has a focus on the bitcoin ecosystem in the US. It was formerly known as Marathon Digital Holdings until August 2024.

The company is actively acquiring energy assets to reduce costs and improve efficiency. In 2024, it increased its energy capacity from 0.5 to 1.7 gigawatts. Its direct Bitcoin energy cost was $28,801, and the cost per kilowatt-hour was $0.039 at owned sites. Owning energy assets allows MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) to extend the life of mining equipment and mine when others cannot. It’s also developing AI solutions for data centers and plans to deploy 30 megawatts of AI compute in 2025.

In full-year 2024, its revenue was $656.4 million, which was a 69% year-over-year rise. The company now plans to acquire more energy assets and aims for 50% international capacity by 2028. It’s focused on capital efficiency and is using its investment in Auradine to build miners. Auradine is a company that designs and builds advanced mining, silicon, and hardware. It enables MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MARA) to produce its own optimized Bitcoin miners.

Overall, MARA ranks 8th on our list of stocks that will go to the moon according to Reddit. While we acknowledge the growth potential of MARA, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold great promise for delivering high returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than MARA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and Complete List of 59 AI Companies Under $2 Billion in Market Cap

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.