Shares of Bitcoin mining company, CleanSpark Inc (NASDAQ: CLSK) have jumped 18 per cent on Monday as it officially joined the S&P SmallCap 600 Index.
The crypto market has faced pressure for weeks, losing over $800 billion in market cap last month. Cleanspark lost 19.1 per cent year to date and plunging 64.1 per cent over the past year before Monday’s turnaround. However, the company posted strong Q4 results, and reported USD$162.3 million in revenue. This marked a 120 per cent raise from the paltry $73.8 million from the same quarter the year prior.
Bitcoin’s rally following Trump’s November election win played a deciding role, as BTC reached USD$108,000 for the first time.
“Our success is the result of our best-in-class bitcoin mining operation, disciplined capital strategy, and long-term view of bitcoin as a strategic asset,” said Zach Bradford, Cleanspark’s CEO.
In February, CleanSpark increased its Bitcoin holdings by 6 per cent, bringing its total to 11,177 BTC, according to Cointelegraph. Only four other publicly traded companies hold more.
“CleanSpark’s inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600 index is another significant milestone for our employees, investors, and management team, and is an important recognition of our consistent performance,” Bradford said.
“Our inclusion enhances visibility within the investment community and gives us an opportunity to demonstrate the value of being a pure-play, vertically integrated Bitcoin mining company and making exposure to our model more broadly available.”
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Institutional investing picks up
The addition to the small cap index and the subsequent price bump may have drawn increased interest from institutional lenders as well.
Boston Partners purchased a new stake in CleanSpark during the fourth quarter, acquiring 46,353 shares valued at approximately USD$427,000.
Other hedge funds have also adjusted their positions.
Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position valued at about USD$39,940,000, while Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake by 40.0 per cent, owning 2,227,199 shares worth USD$20,513,000 after purchasing an additional 636,511 shares.
Furthermore, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings by 9.8 per cent, owning 6,163,461 shares valued at USD$57,577,000.
Barclays PLC boosted its position by 364.0 per cent, owning 389,201 shares worth USD$3,634,000.
Meanwhile, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings by 12.3 per cent, owning 2,464,861 shares worth USD$22,701,000.
Institutional investors and hedge funds now own 43.12 per cent of CleanSpark’s stock.
