Cipher and CleanSpark Receive JPMorgan Upgrades as High-Performance Computing Adoption Picks Up

JPMorgan Upgrades Cipher and CleanSpark as Bitcoin Miners Shift Toward High-Performance Computing

Wall Street bank JPMorgan is raising its outlook on U.S.-listed bitcoin miners, highlighting a wave of high-performance computing (HPC) deals that are reshaping business models and providing greater long-term revenue clarity.

The bank upgraded Cipher Mining (CIFR) to overweight from neutral and raised its price target to $18 from $12, with shares climbing 4.2% in early trading to $14.74. CleanSpark (CLSK) was also upgraded to overweight, rising 4.6% pre-market to $10.18.

IREN’s price target was lifted to $39 from $28, though JPMorgan kept its underweight rating; shares rose 2.2% to $43.20. In contrast, MARA Holdings (MARA) and Riot Platforms (RIOT) saw price target cuts due to the lower bitcoin price—MARA to $13 from $20 and RIOT to $17 from $19—while MARA rose 2.8% and RIOT 1.8%.

JPMorgan noted over $19 billion in contracted revenue across 600 MW of critical IT capacity signed by IREN and Cipher since late September, signaling miners’ pivot from bitcoin-only operations to hybrid HPC models. The bank now expects roughly 1.7 GW of critical IT capacity across its coverage by late 2026, led by IREN and Cipher.

Cipher’s 45% pullback from recent highs presents an attractive entry, backed by 600 MW of contracted capacity with tenants like AWS and Fluidstack. CleanSpark’s upgrade reflects 200 MW of potential HPC capacity at its new Texas site.

JPMorgan analysts also raised equity value per megawatt—$8M–$17M for colocation and up to $19M for integrated cloud—supported by lower discount rates and stronger cash-flow visibility. While Riot and CleanSpark show significant upside under full HPC adoption, Cipher maintains the largest long-term optionality with potential future capacity.