Bloomberg: Crypto Stocks Seen Trading at Steep Discount, COIN basically sold out

BlockBeats News, March 30th, Bernstein stated that, after a significant downturn, the trading prices of cryptocurrency-related stocks are experiencing a "substantial discount," with the current valuation reflecting weak short-term sentiment rather than long-term growth potential.

The research and brokerage firm noted in a report to clients on Monday that stocks related to digital asset infrastructure — including exchanges, brokers, and tokenization platforms — have fallen by about 60% from recent highs, despite their underlying businesses continuing to expand in markets such as stablecoins, derivatives, prediction markets, and tokenizing real-world assets.

Bernstein expects that the current weakness will persist until the release of first-quarter earnings, after which it will stabilize. Therefore, analysts believe that the first-quarter earnings season may form a bottom.

This view continues the firm's recent stance that some sell-offs of cryptocurrency stocks — including those related to Circle due to concerns about U.S. regulation — may have overshot the fundamentals.

Bernstein maintains an "outperform" rating on Coinbase (ticker: COIN) but has lowered its price target from the previous $440 to $330.

Despite soft trading volume in the first quarter, analysts expect earnings growth to remain robust. They also predict that by 2027, its revenue will expand at a compound annual growth rate of about 26%.

Bernstein believes stablecoins will bear much of the growth burden, with Coinbase accounting for about half of Circle's USDC revenue, while derivatives and newer products are beginning to contribute more to the revenue mix.

The report also emphasizes that subscription and service revenue (including stablecoin revenue) provide a buffer against cryptocurrency price volatility, although spot trading volume remains cyclical.

This assessment echoes Bernstein's previous view that Coinbase's stock was "cheap to the point of being hard to sell," with the firm at that time emphasizing that increased trading volume and product expansion would bring significant upside.