First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF CRPT, which provides exposure to crypto industry companies and digital economy companies, has surged about 61% in February, becoming the top-performing ETF of the month.

Although most of the stocks in CRPT’s portfolio delivered strong returns this month, a few have gained more than 50%. These include CleanSpark CLSK, Marathon Digital Holdings MARA, Coinbase Global COIN, Iris Energy IREN and Robinhood Financial LLC HOOD.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency has been on an unstoppable rally amid surging optimism. Demand for the token is widening beyond committed digital-asset enthusiasts. Bitcoin jumped as much as 13% to $63,968 in the Feb 28 trading session — its first trip above $60,000 since November 2021. The rally has set Bitcoin up for its biggest monthly gain since December 2020.

The cryptocurrency jumped 20% this week alone, especially in the wake of heavy institutional buying by a software firm, MicroStrategy MSTR. MicroStrategy revealed that it has bought an additional 3,000 bitcoins this month for $155.4 million. The company now owns a total of 193,000 Bitcoin coins worth about $10 billion (read: Bitcoin on an Unstoppable Rally: 5 Sizzling Hot ETFs).

The arrival of spot bitcoin ETFs is already fueling strength in the space as these are a game changer for the cryptocurrency market. This is because spot Bitcoin ETFs have made it easier for investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without directly owning the asset, thereby underscoring the potential growth of cryptocurrency in mainstream investment platforms. The newly launched 11 Bitcoin ETFs have attracted more than $6 billion since they began trading on Jan 11.

An upcoming halving event, which will decrease Bitcoin’s supply growth, is fueling positive sentiment in the cryptocurrency market. This optimism has contributed to the continuation of a longstanding rally, further invigorating speculative interest in a range of smaller tokens, including Ether and Dogecoin.

Notably, bitcoin has outperformed traditional assets like stocks and gold in 2024, gaining about 40% so far.

Let’s take a closer look at the fundamentals of CRPT.

CRPT in Focus

First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry and Digital Economy ETF is designed to provide exposure to companies that SkyBridge believes are driving cryptocurrency, crypto assets and digital economies-related innovation. SkyBridge identifies securities primarily via “bottom up” research focused on finding companies leading in the crypto industry ecosystem. First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF holds 30 stocks in its basket, with double-digit exposure in the top four firms (read: Crypto Industry ETF Hits a New 52-Week High).

First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF charges 85 bps in fees per year from investors. It has amassed $43.6 million in its asset base and trades in an average daily volume of 70,000 shares.

Best-Performing Stocks of CRPT

CleanSpark is engaged in the mining of cryptocurrencies. The stock has soared 124.6% in February and accounts for a 2.9% share in the ETF.

CleanSpark has an estimated earnings growth of 81.4% for the fiscal year ending September 2024. It has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Marathon Digital is a digital asset technology company that mines cryptocurrencies. It is focused on the blockchain ecosystem and the generation of digital assets. The stock has jumped 75% and accounts for a 13.2% share in the ETF.

Marathon Digital has an estimated earnings growth rate of 457.4% for this year and carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Coinbase is the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, trading some 50 different digital assets. It has rallied 56.6% in February and makes up for 21.7% in CRPT’s portfolio.

Coinbase has an estimated earnings growth rate of 172.9% for this year and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Iris Energy is a Bitcoin mining company that builds, owns and operates data center infrastructure with a focus on entry into regions where it can access abundant and/or under-utilized renewable energy to power its operations. The stock has surged 54.3% this month and accounts for a 1.9% share in the CRPT basket.

Iris Energy has an estimated earnings growth rate of 100.6% for the fiscal year ending June 2024 and a Zacks Rank #3.

Robinhood Financial is a registered broker dealer. Robinhood Securities provides brokerage clearing services, while Robinhood Crypto provides cryptocurrency trading. HOOD has an estimated earnings growth of 132.8% for this year.

Robinhood Financial has gained 50.2% in February and accounts for a 0.2% share in the ETF. It has a Zacks Rank #3.