Bitcoin’s Outperformance Means Some of Expected Post-Halving Rally May Have Come Early: JPMorgan

• JPMorgan notes that mining stocks have slumped ahead of the bitcoin halving.

• The bank favors Riot Platforms and Iris Energy.

• Bitcoin’s outperformance may mean that part of the typical post-halving rally has been pulled forward, the report said.

Recent weakness in mining stocks ahead of the bitcoin (BTC) halving offers an attractive entry point for investors, JPMorgan (JPM) said in a research report on Tuesday.

The total market cap of the 14 U.S.-listed bitcoin miners tracked by the bank fell 28%, or $5.8 billion, to $14.2 billion, from March 31 to April 15, the report said. All of the stocks underperformed bitcoin and all lost at least 20%.

The report noted that bitcoin has gained 43% year-to-date and 130% in the last six months, as it “appears a portion of the typical post-halving rally was pulled forward.”

The quadrennial reward halving slows the rate of growth in bitcoin supply and is expected to occur around April 19-20.

The bank said it is especially bullish on overweight-rated Riot Platforms (RIOT) and Iris Energy (IREN) as these stocks offer attractive relative valuations.

“With the bitcoin halving on the horizon, we expect heightened volatility and trading volume in both bitcoin and mining stocks,” analysts Reginald Smith and Charles Pearce wrote.

JPMorgan notes that mining profitability was lower in the first two weeks of April as “network hashrate growth outpaced bitcoin price appreciation.”