Morgan Stanley warned that a stronger cryptocurrency market may not resolve Gemini’s scale and distribution challenges or deliver profitable growth.
- Morgan Stanley raised its Coinbase price target to $258 from $250 and its Robinhood target to $160 from $150, maintaining its existing ratings on both stocks.
- Barclays raised its Strategy price target to $175 from $160, maintaining an ‘Overweight’ rating.
- The firm cited “resilient” consumer demand and strong sector fundamentals.
Coinbase (COIN), Strategy (MSTR), and Robinhood (HOOD) shares gained in early morning trade on Friday after all three received price target hikes from Wall Street, while Gemini (GEMI) shares fell after a downgrade from Morgan Stanley.
COIN and HOOD shares each gained 1.7%, while MSTR rose about 1.8%. GEMI stock, meanwhile, fell 1.2% in premarket trading. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around all four companies trended in ‘bearish’ territory over the past day.
Morgan Stanley Raises Targets On Coinbase, Robinhood
In a note to investors cited by TheFly, Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Coinbase to $258 from $250 and kept its ‘Equal Weight’ rating. The change came in an earnings preview covering brokers, exchanges and capital-markets infrastructure companies.
The firm also lifted its price target on Robinhood to $160 from $150, maintaining an ‘Overweight’ rating. Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Cyprys said concerns about broker cash balances and artificial intelligence could be “overdone”, stating that higher interest rates could support broker earnings.
Barclays Hikes MSTR Stock Price Target
Barclays analyst Nik Cremo raised his price target on Strategy to $175 from $160 and maintained an ‘Overweight’ rating. The adjustment was part of the firm’s third-quarter earnings preview for the payments and fintech sector.
Cremo said sector fundamentals remained strong, supported by a “resilient” consumer. He attributed September’s volatility in the sector to interest rates and capital rotating into AI-related stocks.
Morgan Stanley Downgrades Gemini To ‘Underweight’
Morgan Stanley took a more cautious view of Gemini, cutting its rating to Underweight from Equal Weight and lowering its price target to $4.75 from $5.50.
The firm said a more favorable cryptocurrency market may not be enough to resolve Gemini’s challenges with scale and distribution or produce profitable growth.
The downgrade reflects Morgan Stanley’s relative assessment of opportunities across its coverage over the next 12 to 18 months. The firm sees more compelling investment opportunities elsewhere, despite the improving backdrop for digital assets.
Bitcoin’s (BTC) price recovered to around $82,500 on Friday morning after dipping below $81,000 in the previous session. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency trend in ‘bearish’ territory over the past day.
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