Bitcoin (BTC) dominated headlines for most of 2024 as its price outperformed most of the top altcoins. However, as October approached, things began to change and the top cryptocurrency by market capitalization was overshadowed.

This shift is why investors are eyeing a potential breakout in non-BTC cryptocurrencies as speculation about an altcoin season grows. Here are three altcoins that could stand out in October 2024.

Stacks (STX)

Stacks is a layer 2 Bitcoin project that enhances the development of smart contract applications on the blockchain. Its native token STX has increased by 13% in the past 7 days and is one of the altcoins that could outperform Bitcoin next month.

STX is on this list because of the highly anticipated Nakamoto upgrade that will take place on October 9. The event, named after Bitcoin creator Nakamoto Satoshi, is expected to be very beneficial for the price.

When deployed, the upgrade will improve DeFi on the Bitcoin network. Stacks may also introduce a Bitcoin-pegged token sBTC, alongside the mainnet upgrade.

Currently, the price of STX is $1.93. On the daily chart, the price dropped to $1.05 during the crash on August 5. However, the formation of an inverse head and shoulders pattern seems to have changed everything for the token.

The inverse head and shoulders is a bearish to bullish reversal pattern where buyers take advantage of seller fatigue. This eventually leads to an upward price move.

As of this writing, STX is facing resistance at $2. However, support at $1.73 suggests that it may not take long for the altcoin to recover.

If that happens, Stacks price could increase by another 20% and reach $2.38 by October 2024. On the other hand, the prediction may not come true if the STX bulls fail to break above the $2 resistance level. If that happens, the altcoin's value could drop below $1.73.

THORChain (RUNE)

RUNE, the native cryptocurrency of the decentralized liquidity protocol THORChain, is one of the altcoins predicted to outperform Bitcoin in October. One reason is RUNE's rising trading volume, which plays a major role in its 30-day price increase.

While the price of RUNE is currently at $5.36, it seems to have hit a barrier at $5.4. Therefore, the altcoin could face a short pullback similar to what happened in May. Furthermore, it could repeat the performance that saw the price bounce and rise to $7.28.

This time, the cryptocurrency could outperform as the chart above shows a 40% upside potential to $7.54 by October 2024. On the contrary, RUNE price could drop to $4.5 and invalidate the bullish thesis if buying pressure subsides.

Phantom (FTM)

The main reason for Fantom’s inclusion on this list is the excitement surrounding the Sonic upgrade. This upgrade is expected to improve translation speed and storage efficiency on the blockchain. Additionally, the token, which has been one of the best performing altcoins in recent times, could also see a migration to the “S” token.

On the daily chart, FTM’s price is at $0.67, with the Exponential Moving Average (EMA) flashing bullish signals. As shown below, the 20 EMA (blue) has crossed above the 50 EMA (yellow). Additionally, for the first time in a long time, the 20 EMA has risen above the 200 EMA (purple), indicating a continued bullish run.

Therefore, Fantom's price is likely to increase by 36.7% to $0.92. Conversely, the price may struggle to reach a level where if the sentiment around the token turns bearish, FTM may remain range-bound at around $0.65.