Ethereum: How STHs could shape ETH’s Q4 price outlook

Key Takeaways

Why is Ethereum showing resilience this quarter?

Ethereum short-term holders remain in a high profit zone, and smart money is buying the dip, giving ETH a conviction-driven advantage.

How does Bitcoin’s weakness affect Ethereum?

BTC’s rising capitulation risk is turning into a relative strength for ETH, positioning it as a safer asset amid broader market weakness.

Zooming out, Ethereum [ETH] is struggling more than Bitcoin [BTC] this month. With a 17.8% drop in November, ETH is posting a -23% Q4 ROI (almost 1.5× behind Bitcoin), repeating a Q1-style divergence.

Looking at the bigger picture, ETH HODLers are taking heavier losses, with 40% of supply currently underwater. But zooming in tells a different story. On the 14th of November, BTC fell to early-May levels with a 5.6% dip.

Meanwhile, Ethereum remains nearly 73% above its $1,793 cost basis from May. Put simply, while BTC HODLers are showing signs of weakness, ETH short-term holders (STHs) are still sitting on a healthy profit buffer.

Source: TradingView (ETH/USDT)

In a risk-off market, this divergence marks a key inflection point. 

Compared with Bitcoin, Ethereum is showing a stronger incentive to HODL, which means its capitulation risk is lower. In fact, just a 0.25% move from ETH’s $3,160 spot price would push a key cohort back into profitability.

For context, 4.09% of ETH’s supply has a realized price of $3,168. Reclaiming this level would put roughly 3 million ETH back in the money. In short, could STH conviction in ETH become a key catalyst this cycle?

Ethereum holds strong as Bitcoin capitulation looms

Bitcoin is showing clear capitulation signals. 

With a 5.2% dip to $94k, BTC’s Net Realized Profit/Loss flipped to red, highlighting $1.3 billion in net losses (its largest loss-led realized value since April). Meanwhile, ETH managed to limit its losses to $325 million.

Simply put, Bitcoin is facing significantly higher selling pressure, while Ethereum remains relatively resilient, with STHs (holding >155 days) holding onto profits, giving ETH a conviction-based advantage.

Source: Glassnode

In short, BTC’s capitulation risk is turning into ETH’s major advantage. 

Moreover, this isn’t just a rundown. Tom Lee is actively buying the “dip.” Arkham Intelligence recently flagged a wallet withdrawing $29.7 million ETH, which matches prior acquisition patterns seen from Bitmine.

All in all, Ethereum’s Q4 tailwind hasn’t flipped bearish yet. 

Given that ETH STHs are sitting in a “relatively” high profit zone, and with smart money buying the dip, Ethereum could indeed position itself as a conviction-driven haven amid broader Bitcoin weakness.