Every major bull market goes through moments of doubt – perhaps “tests of faith” is a better phrasing. The thesis is still entirely intact on a conceptual or fundamental basis, but Mr. Market decides to separate the HODLers from the herd.
Such moments are fodder for great investing war stories of the treasure never claimed.
“Can you believe I sold QCOM at $2.50 per share in October 1998 only to see it at $100 a couple years later!”
“I ditched TSLA at $38 per share in May 2019 when Einhorn and Chanos said it would go bankrupt!”
“I figured AAPL couldn’t keep winning without Steve Jobs, so I dumped my shares at $13.”
Bitcoin is testing that same kind of faith right now. BTC pulled back from $60k to $30k in Q2 2021, and then rallied back to $70k over the next 5 months. Now, it has dropped from $70k to $40k to test that faith once again. But nothing important has changed about the story.
We are still seeing a pervasive march toward mainstream acceptance as a means of payment. We are still seeing a process of global disenchantment with central banking and fiat currencies. And we are still seeing the rise of Web3 across every major facet of digital life.
With the latest pullback, investors are being treated to a potential grab bag of crypto stocks on sale at deep discounts to prior levels, which could present an important opportunity as we get rolling in 2022. With that idea front and center, we cover a handful of the most interesting names in the space below.
Marathon Digital Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MARA) is one of the most recognizable names in the crypto mining space at this point.
The company bills itself as a digital asset technology player that engages in mining cryptocurrencies with a focus on the blockchain ecosystem and the generation of digital assets.
Marathon Digital Holdings Inc (Nasdaq:MARA) recently announced unaudited bitcoin production and miner installation updates for December 2021. The company produced approximately 3,197 self-mined bitcoin in fiscal year 2021, an 846% increase year-over-year. It also noted that it increased total bitcoin holdings to approximately 8,133 BTC with a fair market value of approximately $375.8 million, and had cash on hand of approximately $268.5 million and total liquidity, defined as cash and bitcoin holdings, of approximately $644.3 million.
“2021 was a transformative year for Marathon as we increased our hash rate 1,790% and increased our bitcoin production 846% year-over-year to 3,197 self-mined BTC,” said Fred Thiel, Marathon’s CEO. “We finished the year with our most productive month to date, producing 484.5 bitcoin in December and 1,098 bitcoin in the fourth quarter. We expanded our agreement with Compute North and secured access to reliable hosting and renewable power behind the meter at industry low rates for over 100,000 of our previously purchased miners. And more recently, we placed a record order for BITMAIN’S newest machines, the S19 XP. As a result, we have increased our projected hash rate by 75% from our prior projection of 13.3 EH/s by the middle of 2022 to 23.3 EH/s by early 2023.
If you’re long this stock, then you’re liking how the stock has responded to the announcement. MARA shares have been moving higher over the past week overall, pushing about 3% to the upside on above average trading volume.
Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:MARA) managed to rope in revenues totaling $51.7M in overall sales during the company’s most recently reported quarterly financial data — a figure that represents a rate of top line growth of 6091.1%, as compared to year-ago data in comparable terms. In addition, the company has a strong balance sheet, with cash levels exceeding current liabilities ($315.6M against $3.9M).
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) frames itself as “a mission critical provider of blockchain cryptocurrency mobile apps and cloud-based business software solutions.”
The stock has exploded higher over recent days as the crowd finds it following the company’s announcement that its ZenaPay Blockchain Bitcoin wallet will include credit cards/debit cards to the user wallet. In a major upgrade to the platform, the company stated that the user will be able to store both fiat currency and cryptocurrency and the company says it is working towards gasless transactions and easy transfers to traditional bank accounts. At $0.02 per share, this kind of advance could be a game changer that drives interest.
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) noted in its press release that its primary mission is to become an alternative to bank checking accounts for businesses and allowing them to earn money from their investment into cryptocurrency. “As we build out the infrastructure more opportunities will begin to arise.”
Epazz CEO Shaun Passley, PhD, stated, “We are creating technology for the next generation of payment solutions.”
This marks another advance for a company that has been quietly building a potentially powerful position as a software play in the cryptocurrency space. In an industry overpopulated by mining players, EPAZ offers an SaaS platform solution focus that has less competition and potentially more breadth in utility and value proposition.
The stock took off this week after more than 25% of all volume traded was transacted by shorts over the past 20 days, according to OTCshortreport.com. This could prime the pump for more momentum as those shorts cover as prices ramp.
Epazz, Inc. (OTC US:EPAZ) also has ties to the booming real estate market with upside related to soaring commodities pricing through its CryObo segment, which seeks to drive deals through NFTs that can access the future value of properties once the land is developed and buildings are constructed. The company believes its technology can allow real estate developers to raise capital at better terms and allow the token holders to experience the increased value of their tokens and earned income, creating another path to success as the crypto theme potentially transitions back into favor.
Block Inc. (NYSE:SQ) engages in the provision of credit card payment processing solutions. It is a cohesive commerce ecosystem that helps sellers start, run, and grow their businesses.
The firm’s sellers download the Square Point of Sale mobile app, they can quickly and easily take their first payment, typically within minutes. Its system, sellers gain access to features such as next-day settlements, digital receipts, payment dispute management, data security, and Payment Card Industry compliance. The firm offers additional point-of-sale services, financial services, and marketing services.
Block Inc. (NYSE:SQ) recently announced the availability of on-demand delivery for Square Online orders in Canada through DoorDash Drive, DoorDash’s white-label fulfillment platform that powers direct delivery for any business. Canada is the first international market to offer on-demand delivery since its US launch in 2020. Given the challenges businesses have had to face in recent months, it’s more important than ever that sellers have access to the tools they need to sell online quickly, efficiently, and affordably.
As reported in the company’s release, Wilson Shin, the owner of Katsupan Japanese Sandwich in Toronto, Ontario, has been one of the early adopters of on-demand delivery through Square Online in Canada and welcomes the service as a way to reach more customers. “I think it’s great that Square can now offer a delivery option for customers who buy online, right alongside pickups, as the choice is right in front of them,” says Shin. “The service has been easy to use, which is always important. Overall, it’s a good option for recurring customers and it helps me save on fees as well.”
Even with that news, the action hasn’t really heated up in the stock, with shares moving net sideways over the past week.
Block Inc. (NYSE:SQ) pulled in revenues of $3.8B during the company’s most recently reported quarter to post top line growth of 26.7% year over year. The company is also battling some balance sheet hurdles, with cash levels struggling to keep up with current liabilities ($5.4B against $5.5B, respectively).
Other core plays in the crypto stock space include Riot Blockchain Inc. (Nasdaq:RIOT), Hive Blockchain Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq:HIVE), MicroStrategy Inc. (Nasdaq:MSTR), Coinbase Global Inc. (Nasdaq:COIN), and Silvergate Capital Corp. (NYSE:SI).
