Two major Wall Street banks raised their cryptocurrency stock targets on Tuesday, with Goldman Sachs lifting its Coinbase (COIN) price target to $196 from $173 and Canaccord Genuity raising MicroStrategy (MSTR) to $175 from $130. Both banks maintained their Buy ratings on the respective stocks, as reported by multiple financial sources including CNBC. The upgrades reflect increased institutional confidence in the cryptocurrency sector's growth potential, with Goldman Sachs analyst James Yaro maintaining a 'cautiously optimistic' outlook on Coinbase. The higher target also follows MicroStrategy's disclosure Monday of 'USD Cash,' a new flexible liquidity pool within its Digital Credit Capital Framework.
Goldman Sachs increased its COIN target by approximately 13%, citing two key drivers for the upgrade. According to the bank's statement, COIN offers upside optionality from any persistent improvement in the crypto backdrop and continues to demonstrate strong idiosyncratic growth in newer businesses, including derivatives and prediction markets. The stock closed at $187.16 on Tuesday, up 4.28%, leaving the new target only about 5% above current trading price. Goldman had previously carried a $235 target on COIN back in March before trimming it. The bank cited further potential gains if the crypto market's recovery persists, alongside continued growth in Coinbase businesses. The recent adjustment signals potential upside as the firm anticipates continued growth in Coinbase's newer offerings, as highlighted by crypto commentator @WuBlockchain.
Goldman Sachs also set a new $124 target on Robinhood Markets, maintaining its Buy rating on the stock. According to the bank's report, Coinbase shares gained more than 21% over the week, and Robinhood about 12%, demonstrating strong performance across both cryptocurrency platforms. The timing coincided with Bitcoin's breakout above $80,000, touching an intraday high near $81,000 before easing back toward $79,000 on profit-taking, as reported by crypto news sources. Bitcoin's price gained about 26% higher over the week, providing significant tailwinds for crypto-linked equities. However, the bank noted tension beneath its bullishness, citing that crypto trading volume fell by 30% in July and another 21% in August, leaving activity roughly 75% below its recent peak.
Despite the positive target revisions, Goldman Sachs highlighted significant concerns about crypto trading volume declining by 30% in July and another 21% in August, leaving activity roughly 75% below its recent peak. The bank is betting that rising prices and new revenue lines can carry crypto stocks even while the trading engine underneath them idles. Coinbase's prediction-market business reportedly reached $100 million in annualized revenue less than two months after launch, with sports contracts driving much of the early volume, according to crypto.news. Robinhood launched Robinhood Chain in July, an Ethereum layer-2 network built for tokenized stocks, with Bernstein projecting Robinhood's prediction-market revenue could climb from $150 million in 2025 to $586 million in 2026. These new revenue streams offer fee-generating capabilities regardless of whether people are actively buying and selling Bitcoin or Ethereum.
