We recently published a list of 8 Best Crypto and Blockchain Stocks To Buy According to Analysts. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) stands against other best crypto and blockchain stocks to buy according to analysts.
The Global Blockchain Technology Market
The global blockchain technology market is expected to undergo significant growth in the coming years. According to Fortune Business Insights, the global blockchain technology market was valued at $17.5 billion in 2023 and is expected to experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 59.9% between 2023 and 2030. This growth is anticipated to take the market to a valuation of $469.49 billion by the end of the forecast period.
The increasing adoption of blockchain technology in the financial and retail sectors is one of the primary drivers behind this growth trajectory, with another being the expanding acceptance of cryptocurrencies across the globe. Additional propellers such as Blockchain as a Service (BaaS) services are further buoying the sector. BaaS services allow small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to explore blockchain applications without bringing in the complexity of in-house development.
Cryptocurrencies have played a pivotal role in the trends in the blockchain industry, incentivizing blockchain infrastructure development and boosting innovation in privacy and scalability. Diverse blockchain applications are emerging in the market, including supply chain management, trade finance, cross-border payments, lot lineage/provenance, and identity management.
Blockchain and Crypto: the Golden Post-Election Scenario
Blockchain technology enables the existence of cryptocurrency, among other things. Like a digital ledger, it records and confirms cryptocurrency trades. Behind the most popular cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, is a blockchain called the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin has been regularly hitting fresh records post-election. Other cryptocurrencies like Dogecoin, the favorite coin of strong Trump supporter Elon Musk, are also posting gains, as reported by BBC.
According to analysts, much of these recent gains are due to an anticipated crypto-friendly nature of the upcoming Trump administration, which may translate into more regulatory clarity but also some leeway. This may include a potential national strategic bitcoin reserve or stockpile, and supportive regulations for the industry.
On November 11, MacKenzie Sigalos appeared on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’ to talk about Bitcoin’s post-election rally. She said that most Bitcoin miners are seeing double-digital percentage gains, painting a positive picture for Bitcoin and blockchain stocks. The wider crypto market is also seeing outsized gains.
Sigalos reminded that Donald Trump promised the mining of all future Bitcoin in the US, pledging to rapidly build out the country’s energy production and transmission infrastructure, which she claims is a great thing for power-hungry miners. This is one of the multiple commitments made by the President to the crypto industry on the campaign trail, along with firing SEC Chair Gary Gensler and launching a national crypto stockpile. Overall, the administration is anticipated to be crypto-friendly, painting a favorable picture for investors.
Our Methodology
We sifted through online rankings and ETFs to list the top crypto and blockchain stocks. We then selected 8 stocks with the highest upside potentials that were also the most popular among elite hedge funds. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of their analysts’ upside potential as of November 23, 2024. We also included the number of hedge fund holders for each company as of fiscal Q3 2024, sourced from Insider Monkey’s database.
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 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A computer engineer working in a futuristic office, programming algorithms to mine cryptocurrency.
Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT)
Analyst Upside: 36.48%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 19
Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) is a Bitcoin mining and digital infrastructure company with two segments: Bitcoin Mining and Engineering. It operates Bitcoin mining operations in Kentucky and Central Texas. It also manages electrical switchgear engineering and fabrication operations in Colorado. The company operates a Bitcoin-driven infrastructure platform, with its Bitcoin mining segment encompassing Bitcoin mining activities. It supports the Bitcoin blockchain through large-scale mining operations in the United States. It also has electrical switchgear engineering and fabrication operations in Colorado.
The company’s strategic focus lies in developing a leading vertically integrated Bitcoin mining company that stands on three key pillars. These include being a low-cost producer of Bitcoin, developing and owning operations of significant scale, and building a balance sheet of strength. Its fiscal Q3 2024 earnings demonstrated success across all three of these pillars.
Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) ended fiscal Q3 2024 with 10,427 Bitcoin, with a 42% increase compared to the 7,327 Bitcoin it held at the end of fiscal Q3 2023. It retained 100% of all the Bitcoin produced in fiscal Q3 2024, and reported a total revenue of $84.8 million as compared to $51.9 million for fiscal Q3 2023. This translates to a 65% year-over-year increase, which was primarily attributed to higher Bitcoin prices.
The company holds a competitive advantage due to its unique power strategy that ranks it among the lowest cost miners in the country. It generated $12.4 million in power credits during fiscal Q3 2024, lowering its all-in cost of power to $3.1 cents per kilowatt hour while supporting the Texas grid. Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT) also addressed challenges related to its operational hash rate during fiscal Q3 2024, focusing on continued growth and reaching a standard of operational excellence. The company takes sixth place on our list of the 8 best crypto and blockchain stocks to buy according to analysts.
Overall, RIOT ranks 6th on our list of best crypto and blockchain stocks to buy according to analysts. While we acknowledge the potential of blockchain stocks, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than RIOT but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
