Bitcoin Has Gained Legitimacy as It Has Achieved Mainstream Status These Days

Even the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has acknowledged its legitimacy with the advent of spot Bitcoin

Bitcoin has gained legitimacy as it has achieved mainstream status these days. Even the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has acknowledged its legitimacy with the advent of spot Bitcoin exchanged traded funds (ETFs) like iShares Bitcoin Trust (NASDAQ:IBIT) issued by the world’s largest asset manager BlackRock Inc. (NYSE:BLK).

What was once viewed as a gimmick when MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) went all-in on Bitcoin in 2020, aggressively replacing cash reserves with it and watching its stock soar 20x since then, is now viewed as an ingenious way to increase shareholder value and hedge against inflation.

The meme stock mania of 2021 made the world's largest cinema operator, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE:AMC), a household name, right behind GameStop (NYSE:GME), of course. In fact, GameStop was initially reported by CNBC to be exploring investing in Bitcoin to enhance their balance sheet first, and then AMC became the next speculation.

Many more companies outside of the computer and technology sector are embracing the idea of replacing cash reserves with Bitcoin or just investing in it. Here are three companies holding Bitcoin to increase their treasury and shareholder value.

1. Alliance Resources: From Mining Coal To Bitcoin

Coal mining has gotten a bad rap from environmentalists to clean energy proponents. Yet, coal still makes up 9% of the nation's total energy production. The writing has been on the wall for coal mining, which is why one major coal miner is diversifying by mining and investing in Bitcoin.

Alliance Resource Partners L.P. (NASDAQ:ARLP) is the largest coal producer in the Eastern United States, operating seven underground coal mining complexes. Alliance sells coal to utilities, steelmakers, and industrial companies to generate power and make steel. Alliance is diversified as it also collects royalties from oil and gas mineral interests in the Permian and Anadarko basins. They collect royalties from leasing these interests.

In their Q1 2024 earnings call, Alliance disclosed that they had been dabbling in bitcoin mining as early as 2H 2020, finding a way to use their excess electricity at the River View mine in Kentucky. This is the power they already paid for but weren't actually tapping. By April 2024, the company had mined over $30 million worth of Bitcoin.

On February 3, Alliance reported EPS of 12 cents per share, missing consensus analyst estimates by 58 cents. Revenues fell 5.65% year-over-year (YoY) to $590.09 million, missing estimates by $45.51 million. For the full year 2024, Alliance reported revenue of $2.4 billion, net income of $360.9 million and adjusted EBITDA of $714.2 million. Oil and gas royalties volumes hit a record of 3.4 million barrels of oil equivalents (BOE), up 9.6% YoY. The company also completed $9.6 million in oil and gas interest acquisitions in Q4. Alliance held 482 Bitcoins on the balance sheet, valued at $45 million, at the end of 2024.

The company issued guidance for 2025. Alliance expects overall coal sales volumes between 32.25 million to 34.25 million tons, with more than 78% already committed and priced.

Sales pricing is projected to be between $50 to $53 per ton in the Illinois Basin and $76 to $82 per ton in Appalachia. However, the company expected costs per ton to deflate sequentially through the year.

Material improvements in production costs will offset lower realized pricing as capex is expected to fall significantly down $429 million from 2024. CEO Craft sees potential for higher domestic sales in 2025.

The company declared a quarter cash distribution of 70 cents per unit and $2.80 per unit annualized. As a master limited partnership, they must distribute at least 90% of their cash flow to unit holders (shareholders). Alliance distributes cash quarterly under a payment schedule, which has an annual yield of 10.5% as of February 21, 2024.

Alliance disclosed its Bitcoin mining and investment activities four years after beginning operations, proving it wasn’t just following the trend. Meanwhile, some companies are only now investing in Bitcoin to boost their visibility and balance sheets.

2. Semler Scientific: From In-Office Blood Flow Tests To Bitcoin

Medtech company Semler Scientific Inc. (NASDAQ:SMLR) makes QuantaFlo PAD for peripheral artery disease patients to detect and monitor PAD. Its QuantaFlo device uses sensors to quickly and accurately measure and analyze