HIVE Digital Technologies and MARA Holdings both mined more Bitcoin in the September quarter than they did a year earlier, but their revenue from mining fell—highlighting how quickly miners’ balance sheets can be dominated by the direction of Bitcoin prices and operating costs.

Based on their latest regulatory filings, HIVE increased production by 49% to 1,070 BTC while mining revenue dropped 7.4% to $76 million. MARA reported a 5% rise in output to 2,247 BTC, yet Bitcoin mining revenue fell 34% to $159 million, as weaker pricing overwhelmed the gains from higher production volumes.

Key takeaways

Both HIVE and MARA produced more Bitcoin year-over-year in the September quarter, but mining revenue declined—showing price sensitivity remains central to miner profitability.
Operating cost pressures persisted, with electricity and power-related expenses rising at both companies.
Noncash equipment write-downs—HIVE’s $31.2 million and MARA’s $12 million—point to deteriorating mining economics despite higher output.
Unlike some peers exiting the business, HIVE and MARA are expanding AI and high-performance computing alongside mining.
MARA’s reported profit benefited from gains tied to its digital asset holdings, while HIVE reported a quarterly loss.

More Bitcoin, less revenue: what the quarter shows

At HIVE, Bitcoin production climbed to 1,070 BTC, but mining revenue fell to $76 million, down 7.4% year-on-year. The filings attribute the mismatch primarily to weaker Bitcoin prices, which reduced the dollar value of each unit mined even as output improved.

MARA’s results show a similar pattern. The company mined 2,247 BTC, up 5% from the prior year, while Bitcoin mining revenue decreased sharply to $159 million (down 34%). The combined effect is a reminder that increasing hashrate and production does not automatically translate into stronger cash flows when revenue per coin weakens.

Both firms also disclosed that costs rose during the quarter. HIVE’s electricity costs increased 20% to $45.6 million, while MARA’s purchased energy costs rose 12% to $48.1 million as it continued expanding owned mining operations.

Write-downs underline mining economics stress

Beyond revenue and power expenses, both companies reported impairments tied to mining assets—an additional signal that current mining returns have been under pressure.

HIVE recorded a $31.2 million noncash write-down on mining equipment, citing “depressed mining economics.” MARA separately wrote off $12 million related to mining rigs and equipment under restructuring plans.

For investors, these charges matter even though they are noncash in accounting terms: they reflect management’s view that some mining-related assets may not generate expected future value under prevailing cost structures and market pricing. The industry has been grappling with this tension as Bitcoin’s market cycle and energy costs fluctuate.

The pressure has also been visible in the broader sector. Earlier coverage from Cointelegraph noted that American Bitcoin reported weaker mining margins even while showing a quarterly profit largely supported by treasury-related factors. Cointelegraph also reported that Core Scientific plans to stop mining entirely by year-end as its strategy shifts toward its AI business.

Why HIVE and MARA are leaning harder into AI and compute

While some miners are moving away from mining, HIVE and MARA have taken the opposite approach—continuing to invest in Bitcoin mining while building adjacent revenue streams in high-performance computing.

HIVE reported that its HPC hosting revenue rose 71% to $8.8 million in the September quarter. The company said this represented 10.4% of total revenue. In company disclosures, HIVE described its approach as combining cash flow from mining with recurring revenue from AI infrastructure.

To support that strategy, HIVE said it anticipates spending up to $493 million over 36 months to expand its HPC operations. The filing indicates that $145.3 million had already been spent toward the expansion as of the reporting period. HIVE also flagged plans to convert its Toronto facility into a Tier-III data center for roughly $35 million and discussed continued mining infrastructure buildout, including targeting a 100-megawatt substation expansion at its Yguazú site in Paraguay during 2026.

MARA, for its part, is developing AI infrastructure through its Exaion subsidiary and a partnership with Starwood Digital Ventures. The company said it plans to operate sites that can shift between workloads based on economics, demand, and grid conditions, with Bitcoin mining remaining the foundation of its platform.

Strategically, this matters because it suggests both companies are trying to reduce reliance on a single variable—Bitcoin price—by monetizing compute capacity for AI workloads. However, readers should also watch whether these AI initiatives translate into sustained margins, not just incremental revenue, especially as energy and equipment costs continue to influence mining results.

Profit divergence: MARA’s treasury gains vs. HIVE’s loss

The companies’ overall financial pictures also diverged in ways that underline how differently crypto assets can flow through results.

HIVE’s reported second-quarter revenue was $84.9 million, down 2.7% year-on-year but above a $79.4 million consensus estimate cited by MarketBeat. Still, HIVE reported a quarterly loss in its filing. The operational detail that mining revenue fell while power costs rose provides a direct explanation for why higher output did not translate into higher overall performance.

MARA reported net income attributable to common stockholders of $634.4 million, compared with $123.1 million in the prior year. Its filing indicates that the figure included substantial fair-value gains on digital assets and digital asset receivables. MARA reported quarterly revenue of $164.2 million, down 35% year-on-year, with diluted earnings of $1.28 per share—up from 27 cents a year earlier—again reflecting gains tied to its crypto exposure rather than core mining profitability alone.

In market activity around the reporting period, HIVE shares were down in after-hours trading Monday after closing up on the regular session, while MARA was little changed in after-hours trading following a stronger close.

What to watch next is whether HIVE and MARA can keep growing non-mining compute revenue while containing the cost base that is currently eroding mining margins, and whether further impairments appear as management reassesses asset values under a still-uncertain Bitcoin price and energy cost outlook.