Shares of Hut 8 tumbled 6.7% to $104.52 as investors weighed a second-quarter earnings report that married impressive AI contract wins with an ugly bottom line. Revenue came in at $74.9 million, up 81% year-over-year from $41.3 million , but missed the $76.8 million consensus estimate by about $1.9 million . The real shock was below the top line: a net loss of $177.1 million, compared with net income of $137.5 million a year earlier . The question now is whether Hut 8's massive AI buildout justifies patience through volatile crypto-driven swings.
A $138 Million Paper Loss Wiped Out Real Progress
The quarter included $138.6 million of primarily unrealized losses on cryptocurrency values, compared with $217.6 million of primarily unrealized gains last year. That non-cash swing — roughly $356 million in year-over-year impact — completely drowned out genuine operational gains. Adjusted EBITDA excluding digital assets reached $10.4 million, up from $4.2 million a year earlier , and gross margin expanded to roughly 64% from 47% . But GAAP accounting forces investors to stomach Bitcoin's price swings quarter to quarter, creating headline losses that obscure the underlying business.
The AI Contract Book Is Enormous — But Revenue Is Years Away
Hut 8 now holds 949 MW of contracted AI data center capacity with approximately $26.6 billion of expected base-term contract value and more than $1.75 billion of expected average annual net operating income.
Renewal options could push that total to $50.2 billion. Yet initial data hall delivery isn't expected until Q2 2027 at River Bend and Q3 2027 at Beacon Point — meaning meaningful AI revenue remains at least a year out. Investors are being asked to value a future revenue stream against today's messy income statement.
$7.5 Billion in Financing Shifts Risk Off the Balance Sheet
The company completed $7.5 billion of fully amortizing, investment-grade project financing — $3.25 billion in senior secured notes for River Bend and $4.25 billion for Beacon Point — each without recourse to Hut 8. That non-recourse structure means if projects stumble, lenders absorb losses, not shareholders. Crucially, 100% of Hut 8's AI portfolio is leased to or backstopped by investment-grade counterparties , including Google, reducing credit risk.
The Stock's Wild Ride Reflects the Identity Crisis Hut 8 traded as low as $88.18 on July 29 before surging past $112 — only to reverse on earnings day. Benchmark recently nearly doubled its price target to $165 , yet the stock sits 37% below that. Until AI revenue materializes, Hut 8 remains caught between two narratives: a shrinking crypto miner and a nascent infrastructure giant.