Cryptocurrencies have gained a lot of attention over the last two years. This has sparked investor interest into bitcoin mining stocks.
Some of the world’s most notable financial institutions have invested or become involved in the space. Some names include the likes of Visa, Mastercard, Paypal, Citibank, JP Morgan and Fidelity.
According to a research note by Fundstrat Global Advisors, during the 2020 bull run Bitcoin was up 900%. During the same time frame, the average return for publicly traded bitcoin mining stocks was a whopping 5000%.
While investing into cryptocurrencies comes with its risks, Bitcoin miners are a unique way to gain exposure to Bitcoin mining operating margins. However, they are not for everyone. If you have a strong stomach for volatility, then these 5 bitcoin mining stocks may be right for you!
Bitcoin Mining Stocks List:
- Marathon Digital Holdings
- Riot Blockchain
- Bitfarms Ltd
- Hut 8 Mining Corp
- Hive Blockchain
Marathon Digital Holdings
- Market Capitalization: $2.65 billion
- 3-Year Return (Since 02/04/19): 6,575.18%
- Bitcoin Treasury: 8,133 ₿
Marathon Digital Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA), formerly Marathon Patent Group, is currently the largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner. The company has a current hashing power of 3.6 EH/s with over 8000 BTC on its balance sheet.
They have been an early adopter to the space, aggressively upgrading their mining fleet at the beginning of 2020. Marathon has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from various institutional investors ranging from BlackRock to Vanguard. In Q3 2021, Marathon was added to the Russell 2000 Index.
Marathon will begin ramping up their mining operations in 2022. The company is on track to deploy 133,000 miners, which are expected to generate approximately 13.3 EH/s of mining capacity by mid 2022.
Gaining exposure to cryptocurrencies through Bitcoin miners is definitely not for everyone. However, there is a clear correlation between Bitcoin miners and the outperformance vs. the underlying asset. If you’re looking for a unique way to invest in Bitcoin, Marathon Digital should be the first place to look.
Riot Blockchain
- Market Capitalization: $2.06 billion
- 3-Year Return (Since 02/11/19): 3,363.80%
- Bitcoin Treasury: 4,464 ₿
Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ: RIOT) is an American based Bitcoin mining company. The company has been an early adopter to Bitcoin mining and is one of the largest North American miners.
The current hashing power of Riot Blockchain is 3.40 EH/s with over 4000 BTC on its balance sheet. However, operations did not begin to take shape for the company until 2021. As a result, the company has been able to achieve significant growth milestones.
In March 2021, they deployed 2,201 S19 Pro miners at their Massena, NY facility. Total miners deployed was 13,746 with an operational capacity of 1.3 EH/s. During this same month the company ordered another 1,500 S19j miners, bringing its outstanding orders to 25,400.
Whinstone U.S. Facility (Rockdale, Texas)
- In May 2021, announced the acquisition of Whinstone U.S. (Rockdale, Texas). This is the single largest Bitcoin mining/hosting facility in North America
- 100 acres site totalling three buildings of 190,000 square feet of space
- Total power capacity of 750 M/H
By the end of May 2021, Riot Blockchain’s Bitcoin mining fleet totalled 22,646, with an operational capacity of 2.3 EH/s. Since then, the company has doubled their operational capacity and has plans to reach 7.7 EH/s by the end of 2022. With aggressive plans to scale up their operations in 2022, Riot Blockchain is a top Bitcoin miner to watch in 2022.
Bitfarms Ltd
- Market Capitalization: $740 million
- 2-Year Return (Since 10/08/20): 1,785.71%
- Bitcoin Treasury: 4,600 ₿
Bitfarms Ltd (NASDAQ: BITF) is a leading Canadian-based Bitcoin mining company. They are currently one of the largest Bitcoin mining companies in North America, fully powered by clean hydro-electricity. Bitfarms operates 5 industrial-scale mining facilities located across Quebec, Canada and Washington State.
The current hashing power of Bitfarms Ltd is 2.3 EH/s with over 4000 BTC on its balance sheet. Bitfarms has made significant investments in its Bitcoin mining fleet over the past year. As a result, they were able to more than double their hashing power.
Bifarms has not shied away from its bullish stance on Bitcoin and digital assets. On January 12, 2022 during the cryptocurrency correction, Bitfarms announced the purchase of 1000 Bitcoin.
The total purchase price amounted to USD $43.2 million, increasing the company’s holdings by 30%. Furthermore, the company has bold plans to reach 8 EH/s of mining capacity by the end of 2022.
They will also be expanding their mining operations in Paraguay. Bitfarms is executing on all cylinders and based on their projected hash-rate, they look undervalued compared to their peers.
Hut 8 Mining Corp
- Market Capitalization: $1.21 billion
- 2-Year Return (Since 03/16/20): 1,849.63%
- Bitcoin Treasury: 5,826 ₿
Hut 8 Mining Corp (NASDAQ: HUT) is a leading Canadian-based Bitcoin mining company. They currently hold the second largest Bitcoin reserve among publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies. Hut 8 Mining operates 5 industrial-scale mining operations across Canada.
The current hashing power of Hut 8 Mining is 2.36 EH/s, an increase of 17% from December 31st, 2021. The company currently holds 5,826 Bitcoin in its reserves.
Hut 8 has made significant improvements in its operations over the past 12 months.
In January 2022, the company mined 308 Bitcoin, or roughly 9.9 Bitcoin per day. Hut 8 has more than double their installed hashing power with 209 M/H of installed power capacity.
After the acquisition of TeraGo’s data center business, Hut 8 plans to reach 3.5 EH/s by the end of Q1 2022. The company intends to continue its HODL strategy as they scale up their mining capacity.
Hut 8 is a premier mining company that has established itself as a leader in Bitcoin mining. During January 2022, they installed 6,317 MicroBT M30S and M31S miners. Secondly, their third mining operation is set to be fully operational by the end of Q1 2022. As they continue to scale up their mining operations and Bitcoin HODL strategy, Hut 8 is a top miner to watch for 2022.
Hive Blockchain Technologies
- Market Capitalization: $880 million
- 3-Year Return (Since 12/16/19): 3,472.65%
- Bitcoin Treasury: 2,043 ₿
- Ethereum Treasury: 25,404
Hive Blockchain Technologies (NASDAQ: HIVE) is the first publicly traded crypto miner. The company uses 100% green energy to mine both Bitcoin and Ethereum. Hive operates 3 industrial-scale mining operations across Canada, Iceland and Sweden.
The current hashing power of Hive Blockchain is 1.87 EH/s, an increase of 10% from December 31st, 2021. The company currently holds 2,043 Bitcoin in its reserves.
In January 2022, Hive mined 264 Bitcoin, or roughly 8.5 Bitcoin per day. The total Bitcoin equivalent mined (Including Ethereum), equated to 425 Bitcoin, or roughly 13.7 Bitcoin per day.
They are a unique cryptocurrency miner in which they mine both Bitcoin and Ethereum. The company also mines Ethereum Classic and sells their tokens to cover operating expenses. Many believe that Ethereum will be the future native token of the internet, thus putting increased eyes on Hive.
Hive Blockchain’s fourth data center is under construction at its site located in New Brunswick, Canada. New installed capacity will allow the company to reach 2 EH/s of hashing power. The company has remained the most profitable miner amongst its peers.
In their most recent earnings report, net income rose 549% year-over-year to $59.8 million. With growing mining operations and exposure to both Bitcoin and Ethereum, Hive Blockchain is a compelling miner to watch for the years ahead.
Disclosure: The author holds a position in Marathon Digital Holdings Inc, Riot Blockchain Inc, Hut 8 Mining Corp, and Hive Blockchain Technologies Ltd. The author does not hold a position in Bitfarms Ltd. Freedom Stocks has a disclosure policy.
