We recently published a list of 10 S&P 500 Stocks That Outperformed Bitcoin in 2024. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) stands against other S&P 500 stocks that outperformed bitcoin in 2024.
Bitcoin’s price has fluctuated dramatically since U.S. President Donald Trump’s inauguration, with the cryptocurrency staying around $100,000 since achieving the milestone in December. Trump’s ascension as the president has fueled more Bitcoin optimism, with many expecting a more favorable regulatory environment for digital assets. After the SEC approved the first U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF last year, Bitcoin surpassed the $70,000 price milestone set for 2021. The acceptance was largely regarded as a watershed event for the cryptocurrency, increasing its attractiveness to more mainstream investors. This year, Bitcoin’s price has more than doubled. The token is widely projected to see even stronger price movement in 2025, with numerous industry analysts estimating a doubling in value to $200,000.
In an interview with CNBC, James Butterfill, head of research for crypto-focused asset management CoinShares, stated that Bitcoin values in 2025 might range between $80,000 and $150,000. Butterfill stated that in the long run, it would not be “unreasonable” to anticipate Bitcoin to be worth around 25% of gold’s market share, up from roughly 10% presently. Should Butterfill’s $80,000 call be met, it will be due to President Trump’s failure to implement his promised pro-crypto measures.
Hedge Fund Managers’ Stance on Bitcoin
Of course, a few hedge fund managers have joined to claim a piece of the Bitcoin pie as well. ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, for example, remains unwavering in her prediction that Bitcoin will reach $1.5 million by 2030. Known for her ambitious tech projections, the financial expert outlined the scenario at Ark’s Big Ideas 2025 conference, revealing that the chances of attaining this massive sum had actually grown. The investor has proposed three options: a middle-ground of $710,000, a cautious estimate of $300,000, and the bull scenario of $1.5 million.
Given all of this, is Bitcoin a worthwhile investment? Even the most popular cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, have fluctuated in value, the market isn’t as transparent as it is for stocks, transactions are irreversible, and consumer safeguards are low or nonexistent. According to Charles Schwab, as long as Bitcoin is extremely volatile and susceptible to large transaction fees, it appears that it will have little utility as a means of trade or a store of wealth. With that in mind, it is understandable that equities tend to be less volatile than cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.
Our Methodology
For this list, we focused on stocks in the S&P 500 with a price performance greater than that of BTC (92.73%) as of February 17. These stocks are ranked in ascending order according to their 1-year price performance. In addition, we mentioned hedge fund sentiment around each stock to provide further insight into their market standing.
Why do we care about what hedge funds do? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
Axon Enterprise, Inc. (AXON): Among S&P 500 Stocks That Outperformed Bitcoin in 2024
A technician in a white coat testing an in-car system on a modern military vehicle.
Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) is a prominent provider of law enforcement technology solutions, including less-lethal weaponry, body cameras, and cloud-based software. The company’s target market is law enforcement agencies in the United States and beyond.
On February 4, JMP Securities analyst Trevor Walsh increased Axon Enterprise’s price target to $725 from $610, while maintaining his Market Outperform rating for the AXON stock, indicating confidence in the company’s growth trajectory. Walsh emphasized the usefulness of Axon’s products in increasing police officer productivity and the potential for considerable time savings, especially through the company’s software solutions. According to the analyst, Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) will leverage its product story even further in 2025 with the release of the AI Era Plan package, which offers a $1.8 billion market potential.
Conestoga Capital Advisors stated the following regarding Axon in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) continued to see robust demand for its products and services, from TASERs to body cameras to the software that powers many applications within public safety operations. Shares jumped on third-quarter results, which saw revenue grow 32%, EBITDA 58%, and backlog 33% to $7.7 billion. In addition, AXON continued to expand adjusted EBITDA margins, which were above 25% in the third quarter. AXON was a leader in three of the four quarters in 2024.
Overall, AXON ranks 4th on our list of S&P 500 stocks that outperformed bitcoin in 2024. While we acknowledge the potential of AXON as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that certain AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than AXON but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
