Marqeta initiated with a Hold at Berenberg

Berenberg analyst Mark Palmer initiated coverage of Marqeta (MQ) with a Hold rating and $5 price target. The firm expects Marqeta’s gross margin and take rate to decline as a result of its new agreements with Block (SQ), though the range of outcomes is “so broad that the extent of the impact of the renewals is difficult to assess and quantify,” the analyst tells investors. Given that uncertainty, combined with its view that Marqeta’s current share price does not reflect a negative outcome, causes the firm to stay on the sidelines, the analyst added.