Shares of cryptocurrency exchange platform Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN) gained 11.7% yesterday and rose another 1.2% in extended trading on July 3. The shares rallied on the news that exchange operator Cboe Global Markets had refiled its spot Bitcoin (BTC-USD) ETF (exchange-traded fund) application with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), naming COIN as the partner for market surveillance sharing agreements.
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An earlier attempt by Cboe and BlackRock was rejected by the SEC, claiming that there was no adequate proof of monitoring and ruling out market manipulation. Cboe hopes to launch a spot Bitcoin ETF that will be managed by Fidelity Investments. The operator refiled the application on Friday, June 30, stating that it will employ Coinbase to prevent market manipulation during the ETF launch process. Asset managers are trying to find ways to make their spot Bitcoin ETF applications work because it will boost crypto’s adoption even with traditional investors.
The news also pushed shares of MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) to a new 52-week high of $378.27. MSTR stock gained 10.3% on July 3 and rose another 2% in extended trading yesterday. The business intelligence company buys and holds Bitcoins as a business practice. As of date, MSTR holds 152,333 BTC, valued at roughly $4.52 billion. Additionally, BTC-USD is trending above the $31,000 mark following the news.
Is COIN a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Yesterday, Barclays analyst Ramsey El Assal initiated coverage of COIN stock with a Hold rating. The analyst assigned a price target of $61 (23.7% downside potential), implying the stock is overvalued currently. COIN stock is already up 137.9% year-to-date.
Overall, on TipRanks, COIN has a Hold consensus rating based on seven Buys, seven Holds, and six Sell ratings. The average Coinbase Global price target of $57.71 implies a whopping 27.8% downside potential from current levels.
Further, investors looking for the most profitable analyst for COIN could follow Patrick O’Shaughnessy of Raymond James. Copying his trades on this stock and holding each position for one year could result in 50% of your transactions generating a profit, with an average return of 26.93% per trade.
