Bitcoin News Today: Bitcoin Miners' HPC Pivot Drives JPMorgan Revaluations: New Era of Data-Center Dominance

JPMorgan Chase has reshaped its outlook for the bitcoin mining sector, upgrading Cipher Mining (CIFR) and CleanSpark (CLSK) to Overweight while cutting price targets for legacy miners like Marathon Digital (MARA) and Riot Platforms (RIOT). The moves reflect a broader industry shift toward high-performance computing (HPC) and cloud infrastructure, with analysts projecting a "higher-conviction" phase for miners transitioning to data-center operators.

The firm's Reginald Smith and Charles Pearce highlighted a surge in long-term HPC contracts, with over 600 megawatts of deals signed since late September, including partnerships with AWS, Microsoft, and Google-backed Fluidstack. JPMorgan now expects miners to allocate 1.7 gigawatts of critical IT capacity to HPC by late 2026, equivalent to 35% of their approved power footprints. This pivot is central to the upgrades for Cipher and CleanSpark, which the bank views as well-positioned to capitalize on the transition.

Cipher Mining's rating was lifted from Neutral to Overweight, with a December 2026 price target raised to $18 from $12. The firm cited the company's 410 MW of HPC contracts and a 45% share-price pullback as a "nice entry point". Analysts forecast Cipher could secure 480 MW of critical IT capacity by 2026, or 64% of its approved capacity, with long-term sites in 2028–2029 potentially driving higher valuations according to market analysis. CleanSpark, meanwhile, retained its Overweight rating, with its $14 target reaffirmed. The bank credited CleanSpark's 200 MW of critical IT potential at its Texas site, valued at $13 million per megawatt.

In contrast, JPMorgan trimmed MARA's price target to $13 from $20, citing weak bitcoin prices, a rising network hashrate, and dilution from ATM issuance and convertible notes. The firm reduced MARA's mining business valuation to $1.3 billion from $2.5 billion. Riot's target was cut to $17 from $19, with analysts anticipating a 600-MW colocation deal at its Corsicana site and a revised mining operation valuation of $1 billion.

The report also raised IREN's price target to $39 from $28, reflecting its $9.7 billion Microsoft deal and integrated cloud capacity valuations. However, the firm maintained an Underweight rating, arguing the stock already prices in future HPC projects at undeveloped sites.

Market reactions followed swiftly. Cipher's shares rose 4.59% to $14.80, while CleanSpark climbed 4.42% pre-market according to market data. JPMorgan noted that HPC capacity valuations had increased, with critical IT colocation now priced at $8 million to $17 million per megawatt and integrated cloud capacity reaching up to $19 million according to industry estimates. The firm's adjustments underscore a sector-wide revaluation, as miners pivot from bitcoin production to diversified data-center revenue streams according to industry analysis.