Many companies actively involved in the artificial intelligence (AI) and digital asset revolution continue to attract investors. Some crypto and crypto-related stocks are even considered potential multi-baggers.
Hut 8 (TSX: HUT) is among the overhyped stocks in 2026. But given current market conditions, excitement could wane, leaving a $100,000 investment worthless. The shift from crypto mining to AI data centres is a tailwind, though the crypto space is heavily influenced by Bitcoin’s performance.
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Price and performance
Bitcoin remains the undisputed poster child, if not the face of cryptocurrencies. Unfortunately, the supposedly digital gold has yet to shed its speculative and high-risk image. The speculative tag stems from its unpredictable performance. BTC closed at US$87,508.83 at year-end 2025 after peaking at US$124,752.53 on October 6, 2025, a nearly 30% drop in just three months.
As of March 5, 2026, BTC’s price is US$72,668.99, a 16.9% year-to-date loss. In contrast, Hut 8 enjoys a 17.2% year-to-date gain. At $73.99 per share, the trailing one-year price return is plus-264.5%. A $100,000 investment a year ago would be worth $364,482.76 today. However, if HUT begins to mirror BTC’s downtrend, the gains could disappear in an instant.
High-risk, high-reward
Hut 8 is not an essential or need-to-have stock in the current scary environment, but rather a high-risk, high-reward speculative play despite its outperformance. While the trailing gains have been significant, you should not expect mouth-watering returns when volatility spikes. A crypto pullback could happen if Bitcoin fails to hold at the current level.
Thus far, Hut 8 has held steady, driven by the hype over its shift to AI infrastructure. The $8 billion company is no longer just a Bitcoin miner and benefits immensely from the AI boom. It has diverted power from Bitcoin mining to AI data centres, where profit margins are higher and more stable. Unfortunately, profitability is a major concern.
Financial performance
Today, Hut 8’s energy infrastructure platform integrates power, digital infrastructure, and compute at scale to fuel next-generation, energy-intensive use cases. In full-year 2025, total revenue climbed 44.8% year-over-year to US$235.1 million. The Compute segment accounted for 86% of the total revenue.
Its CEO, Asher Genoot, said, “Over the past two years, we have rebuilt Hut 8 around a power-first strategy centred on high-velocity origination, disciplined greenfield development, first-principles infrastructure design, and capital-efficient execution. He added that the work in 2025 translated into tangible growth and commercial progress across the platform.
Still, the net loss reached US$248 million compared with net income of US$331.4 million in 2024. The operating loss for the year was US$322 million. The massive reversal on the bottom line was due to the valuation of Hut 8’s Bitcoin holdings (unrealized gains in 2024). It also reflects the extreme volatility of the business model, including non-cash accounting adjustments related to Bitcoin.
Final verdict
Hut 8, an erstwhile pure-play Bitcoin miner, is now a more stable mid-cap stock following impressive growth. Focusing on AI data centres can potentially generate massive profits. Nonetheless, the stock could crash hard if it doesn’t make as much money as investors hope, not to mention the impact of Bitcoin’s wild ride.
