Bitcoin miners under pressure: profitability sags 7% in a month

September was not easy for miners of the first cryptocurrency. According to Jefferies calculations, the sector's total return fell by more than 7% as Bitcoin's price fell by 2% and the network's overall hash rate added about 9%. The higher the blockchain's processing power, the harder it is to find a new block, so each extra tera- or hash increases competition and reduces the share of the reward attributable to an individual player.

Falling margins are most vividly seen in hashprice, the notional revenue in dollars per unit of capacity. A theoretical 1 EH/s farm earned approximately $52,000 per day in September, up from $56,000 in August. A year ago, a similar unit was earning only $43,000, so even with the latest rollback, mining remains profitable for operators with low energy costs, but the safety cushion is thinning rapidly.

Public North American companies mined 3,401 BTC versus 3,576 coins a month earlier, their share of the global hashrate shrinking to 25%. Leading the issue was Marathon Digital with 736 BTC, with CleanSpark in second place with 629 BTC. At the same time, Marathon maintains the largest active hardware fleet - 60.4 EH/s, which gives it more room to maneuver when the complexity grows.

The report emphasizes: the longer the price remains under pressure, the more important it is for miners to improve energy efficiency and optimize capital expenditures. Some participants are already diversifying their business by deploying computing platforms for high-performance computing and cloud services. This approach partially insures against the volatility of the crypto market and allows for long-term contracts with corporate clients.

On the stock market, analysts are reacting point by point. Jefferies raised its target price on Galaxy Digital to $45 per share, noting the company's hybrid model. The target on Marathon Digital is raised to $19, which corresponds to a current market value of about $20.55. Such updates signal: investors still believe in the industry and expect a return to profitability after Bitcoin stabilizes.

In the coming months, the sector's dynamics will depend on two factors - hash rate growth and electricity prices. If the former variable continues to accelerate and the latter remains high, the pressure on margins will intensify. At the same time, a possible bullish reversal of quotations can quickly return yields to previous levels and renew the investment boom in new equipment.