Cipher Mining (NASDAQ:CIFR) Reaches New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Cipher Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:CIFR) reached a new 52-week high of $12.84 during trading, closing at $12.35 with over 9.4 million shares traded.
• Analysts generally have a positive outlook on CIFR, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and significant upward revisions of price targets from firms such as Canaccord Genuity and Macquarie.
• Despite the positive movements in stock price, Cipher Mining reported a negative net margin of 96.95% and an EPS of ($0.12), meeting analyst expectations but highlighting ongoing financial challenges.

Cipher Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:CIFR - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $12.84 and last traded at $12.35, with a volume of 9484493 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.28.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CIFR shares. Compass Point initiated coverage on Cipher Mining in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Cipher Mining from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on shares of Cipher Mining from $6.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cipher Mining from $9.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Jones Trading assumed coverage on shares of Cipher Mining in a research note on Monday, July 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cipher Mining currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $8.11.

Cipher Mining Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.47 and a beta of 2.75. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $7.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 4.18 and a quick ratio of 4.18.

Cipher Mining (NASDAQ:CIFR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $43.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $51.89 million. Cipher Mining had a negative net margin of 96.95% and a negative return on equity of 21.71%. On average, analysts expect that Cipher Mining Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Cipher Mining

In other news, major shareholder Top Holdco B.V. Bitfury sold 667,010 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.11, for a total transaction of $4,075,431.10. Following the transaction, the insider owned 93,667,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $572,308,040.07. This represents a 0.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Holding Ltd V3 sold 900,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.98, for a total value of $8,982,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 83,942,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $837,743,744.82. This represents a 1.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,411,532 shares of company stock worth $114,151,642. 2.89% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cipher Mining

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Marex Group plc bought a new position in shares of Cipher Mining in the second quarter valued at approximately $333,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Cipher Mining in the second quarter worth $397,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Cipher Mining by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 31,770 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,000 after acquiring an additional 9,295 shares in the last quarter. Northern Right Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Cipher Mining in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $846,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Cipher Mining by 28.3% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,984,438 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,541,138 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 12.26% of the company's stock.

About Cipher Mining

Cipher Mining Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development and operation of industrial scale bitcoin mining data centers in the United States. The company was incorporated in 2020 and is based in New York, New York. Cipher Mining Inc operates as a subsidiary of Bitfury Holding B.V.