Benchmark Raises Hut 8 Price Target to $165 After Beacon Point Deal

Benchmark says Beacon Point could accelerate Hut 8’s move into AI infrastructure, backed by $4.25 billion in financing and billions in contracted lease value.

Key Takeaways

• Benchmark raised its price target for Hut 8 from $85 to $165 and kept its Buy rating.
• The broker sees added value in Beacon Point, which it says further positions Hut 8 as an AI infrastructure company instead of just a Bitcoin miner.
• Hut 8 has completed $4.25 billion in project financing and, according to Benchmark, has a development pipeline of more than 9 gigawatts.

Benchmark lifted its price target on Hut 8 to $165 (€144) from $85 (€74) and reiterated its Buy rating. The firm says the main upside comes from Beacon Point’s move toward commercialization, which it believes strengthens Hut 8’s case as an AI data center project operator rather than only a Bitcoin miner.

Beacon Point Is Driving the Valuation

Analyst Mark Palmer says Hut 8 now has a second, larger hyperscale site in Beacon Point, alongside River Bend. The campus in Nueces County, Texas, is planned for as much as 1,000 MW of utility capacity, with first energization expected in the first quarter of 2027. That lines up with Hut 8’s power-first approach, where the company secures large-scale electricity capacity first and decides later how to monetize the site.

Benchmark estimates that Hut 8 has now locked in $16.8 billion (€14.7 billion) in contracted lease value across two AI campuses. If tenants exercise their renewal options, that figure could climb to $42.8 billion (€37.5 billion). For Beacon Point alone, Palmer expects $9.8 billion (€8.6 billion) in base-term contract value in the first phase, along with about $655 million (€573 million) in average annual net operating income.

Financing and Pipeline

The higher valuation is tied not only to the contracts, but also to the financing structure. Hut 8 recently closed $4.25 billion (€3.7 billion) in investment-grade project financing for Beacon Point, after previously raising $3.25 billion (€2.8 billion) for River Bend. Benchmark says that supports the company’s effort to lower its cost of capital by turning development assets into long-term, contracted cash flow.

The broker also points to a development pipeline of more than 9 gigawatts across projects in exclusivity, development, construction, and management. Palmer says that gives Hut 8 a long runway for growth, even though the stock has fallen nearly 30% over the past six weeks.

Why This Matters

For European crypto readers, this is another sign that Bitcoin miners are moving well beyond their original business model. The push into AI workloads and data centers matters for the broader crypto market because companies are starting to use their balance sheets, power contracts, and infrastructure in ways that look very different from traditional mining. For investors in crypto stocks, that could mean Hut 8 is increasingly being valued for contract revenue and project financing rather than mining income alone.

It also fits a wider trend of miners repurposing existing infrastructure for AI. The value of Cipher and TeraWulf's AI sites was also examined, as investors place more weight on long-term lease agreements and power capacity.