Bernstein raises Riot Platforms price target to $35 as Bitcoin miner’s AI pivot gains traction

Riot Platforms just became the latest Bitcoin miner to convince Wall Street it’s more than a Bitcoin miner. Bernstein raised its price target on RIOT stock to $35, and the market’s reaction was swift: shares jumped more than 27% in pre-market trading. The AI data center play Riot’s pivot isn’t theoretical. The company has secured a high-performance computing lease with AMD at its Rockdale, Texas facility, a deal valued at approximately $311 million over ten years. The agreement starts with an initial 25 MW capacity, with an option to scale up to 200 MW. Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani, who carries an Outperform/Buy rating on the stock, had previously raised the price target from $25 to $30. The latest move to $35 signals that Chhugani sees accelerating momentum in Riot’s infrastructure transformation, not just a one-off contract win. At the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in late May, Riot’s leadership showcased its AI-focused data center expansion plans and reported increasing recurring revenue from data center operations. Why Bitcoin miners are becoming AI landlords Riot isn’t operating in a vacuum. Core Scientific blazed the trail, signing a massive deal with CoreWeav...