Miners are the backbone of the Bitcoin network. Alongside archival full nodes, miners provide the infrastructure necessary for Bitcoin to function. Bitcoin’s hash rate reached new record highs in 2023, indicating lots of new mining activity on the network.
Some Bitcoin mining companies have become so large as to now be publicly-traded companies. Their shares could be a good investment, as some have outperformed bitcoin in the last year. Perhaps that’s why BlackRock has become a major shareholder of 4 of the 5 largest miners.
With the halving on the horizon, it stands to reason that miners could be struggling. So far, just the opposite has been true.
Individual Mining Stocks
While bitcoin has had a great run, closing out the year up over 150%, some miners saw gains in excess of 700% in 2023. While bitcoin is considered by many to be a speculative asset, bitcoin mining stocks can be more volatile and speculative than actual bitcoin. This provides a way for investors to make a sort of leveraged, speculative play on the bitcoin and the digital asset market.
Here are a few of the largest miners to look out for in 2024.
A Look at The Bitcoin Mining Companies
Marathon Digital Holdings (MARA)
Marathon Digital is one of the largest Bitcoin miners in the world. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Las Vegas.
MARA closed above its 50-day MA on January 4, while being on the verge of breaking out of its recent 3-day trading range to the upside. The stock has made a series of higher highs and higher lows over the past two days.
Riot Platforms, Inc. (RIOT)
According to their website, Riot Platforms operates the largest Bitcoin mining operation in North America.
RIOT closed above its 9-day MA and 21-day MA on January 4 and is consolidating just beneath the $16 resistance level. A break and hold above $16 could signal sustained momentum to the upside.
Hut8 (HUT)
Hut 8 began as a smaller, Canadian Bitcoin mining company until they merged with U.S. Data Mining Group in 2023. Now they can be considered among the largest operations in North America.
After a steep correction, HUT appears to be consolidating above the $12 support zone on the hourly charts. A close above the 9-day MA and 21-day MA could signal a bullish reversal. The RSI is already indicating the potential for such a move, with a slight bullish divergence happening on January 3 and 4.
Conclusion
It’s worth noting that markets don’t go up in a straight line. With such rapid price increases, miners could be due for a pullback before marching higher. There’s also the halving to take into consideration as miner revenue will be cut in half this April. How that may affect share prices remains to be seen. This is the first cycle we’ve seen such large investments into miners as public companies. A lot of unknowns are in play.
Still, the approval of a Bitcoin Spot ETF has yet to hit the market. Many believe this could be an additional catalyst for BTC mining stocks’ impressive run. And if bitcoin’s price appreciates rapidly, this could offset any loss of revenue for miners.
