JPMorgan upgrades Coinbase, saying the shares are cheap and a 25% rally is ahead
JPMorgan is coming off the sidelines when it comes to Coinbase . The bank upgraded shares of the cryptocurrency exchange to an overweight rating from neutral. It also lifted its price target to $404 per share from $342. Coinbase stock has rallied 30% this year, but the firm said it still has an attractive valuation versus competitors. JPMorgan’s revised forecast calls from an additional upside of 25% from here. COIN YTD mountain COIN YTD chart As a catalyst, analyst Kenneth Worthington pointed to Coinbase’s exploration of launching a potential Base token, which he sees as accelerating the growth of development on the Base blockchain, launched in August 2023. The market capitalization of such a token could eventually swell to between $12 billion and $34 billion, he wrote. “We see a token as a win/ win for shareholders and cryptocurrency participants with a token driving development, increasing community participation and contributing to infrastructure buildout,” the analyst added. Another catalyst comes as Coinbase further exploring with USDC payouts in order to promote Coinbase One, its monthly subscription service. USDC is a stablecoin that is pegged to the dollar. “We see Coinbase experimenting with yields on USDC, both to drive further growth of Coinbase One, but also to better monetize on-platform USDC,” the analyst wrote. “We see Coinbase potentially driving more clients to utilize Coinbase One, which offers subscription pricing for trading as well as other benefits, including an enhanced yield on USDC.” Meantime, Worthington believes that the threat of decentralized exchanges taking away share of cryptocurrency spot trading from Coinbase has largely begun to stabilize. Coinbase’s launch of decentralized trading via Base also helps to mitigate this competitive threat, he added. JPMorgan says when applying a 50x P-E that its competitors such as Circle and Bullish have to Coinbase’s 2027 earnings estimate and including the value of the Base token, it arrives at the $404 target price. ( Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here . )
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