Bitcoin Mining Stocks Sink Up to 9.6% Yet Outperform BTC at $77,849

On May 16, 2026, listed bitcoin miners fell 2.5-9.6% in a broad sell-off, with Bitdeer dropping 9.59%. Despite the single-day losses, the group still leads BTC’s 2026 performance, led by Hut 8’s +123% gain. The pullback follows Q1’s sharp hashrate contraction from 985 EH/s to 873 EH/s as operators including IREN and Cipher shuttered rigs to pivot into AI/HPC contracts now totaling over $70 billion. Meanwhile, Riot, MARA and American Bitcoin expanded capacity and captured share, while BTC closed the week at $77,849, down 11.1% YTD.