Bitcoin Miner CleanSpark Surges on Plan to Sell Legacy Energy Business

BTIG analyst Gregory Lewis sees higher growth with the company's new strategy.

AccessTimeIconFeb 10, 2022 at 6:40 p.m. UTC
Updated May 11, 2023 at 6:44 p.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Shares of CleanSpark rose sharply on Thursday on news that the company plans to sell its legacy energy business in order to focus on its faster-growth bitcoin mining operations.

  • The stock was recently up nearly 15%, far outpacing today’s gains for the rest of the crypto mining industry.
  • CleanSpark CEO Zach Bradford announced the company's new strategy along with the release of its fiscal first-quarter earnings report late Wednesday.
  • BTIG analyst Gregory Lewis says the plan has the “potential to flip the script and drive incremental growth.”
  • The company has a current hashrate of 2.1 exahashes per second and another roughly 1.9 EH/s on order, Lewis wrote, with a hoped-for year-end hashrate of about 4.0 EH/s. He figures CleanSpark will need about $40 million in capital expenditures to hit that number.
  • Speaking on its earnings call, CleanSpark management said that it prefers to raise the capital by issuing rig-backed debt and that the company is in active talks with lenders. Other options include monetizing some of the company's bitcoin (BTC) holdings, which doesn’t necessarily mean just sales, because it might include yield strategies, as well.
  • BTIG’s Lewis maintained his buy rating and 12-month price target of $30 on CleanSpark's shares, which is triple the current levels.

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

Aoyon Ashraf

Aoyon Ashraf is managing editor with more than a decade of experience in covering equity markets


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.