Some analysts can’t get enough of crypto darling Circle Internet Group . Circle is the issuer of USDC, a popular stablecoin, and may be the latest stock to benefit from both a more favorable IPO environment and crypto-friendly regulation. Shares of Circle have popped an eye-watering 482% since the company went public earlier in June. The stock has been popular from the beginning, with opening at $69 on the New York Stock Exchange — far higher than its IPO pricing of $31. Circle stock soared 168% on the day of its debut, closing at $83.23 per share. Despite Circle’s already impressive rally, some analysts have even higher hopes for the stock going forward, such as Needham and Barclays. Others, such as JPMorgan, have a more downbeat outlook on the stock. JPMorgan, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs were the three lead bookrunners for the Circle IPO on June 4 , while 12 other banks acted as bookrunners, co-managers or junior co-managers. Here’s what analysts at some of the biggest shops on Wall Street had to say about Circle. Needham initiates at buy rating and $250 price target Analyst John Todaro’s target implies about 39% upside from Friday’s close. “We view stablecoins as a fast-growing, paradigm shifting part of the financial ecosystem; we expect USDC to be dominant within … We believe Circle could be a company in a paradigm shifting segment that supports a premium valuation akin to a Tesla or dominant AI company.” Canaccord Genuity initiates at buy rating and $247 price target Canaccord Genuity’s price target calls for 37% upside going forward. “Big run-up post IPO means short-term valuation a risk factor; but sheer TAM size, improving regulatory backdrop, and early market leadership all point to a much larger business medium term; DCF analysis is supportive.” Bernstein initiates at outperform and $230 price target Analyst Gautam Chhugani’s forecast is 27% above Circle’s Friday closing price. “CRCL is building a market-leading digital dollar stablecoin network, with a strong regulatory edge, liquidity headstart and marquee distribution partnerships. This is hard to replicate, in our view. We view CRCL as an investor must-hold, to participate in the new internet-scale financial system built for the next decade.” Barclays initiates at overweight rating and $215 price target Analyst Ramsey El-Assal’s price target was approximately 19% higher than Circle’s closing price on Friday. “As blockchain technology is integrated into the traditional financial ecosystem, we view CRCL as one of the only ways for public company investors to play the theme. A steady drumbeat of stablecoin-related news should send shares higher.” Deutsche Bank initiates at hold rating and $155 price target Deutsche Bank’s target equates to 14% downside. “While we see potential for strong long-term industry adoption of stablecoins, the range of outcomes are very wide & likely to create substantial volatility in earnings revisions and the share price for at least the near-to-intermediate term. Hence, we see the shares as being fairly valued, albeit within a wide range, but we would wait for better opportunities before starting a position.” Goldman Sachs initiates at neutral rating and $83 price target Analyst James Yaro’s price target implies downside of 54% ahead. “CRCL is a unique asset in the public markets, as the only pure play crypto-native company that has potential upside from expansion into very large existing fiat markets, without the direct price volatility inherent to crypto trading. CRCL’s main product, USDC, is a stablecoin meant to represent USD on blockchain … We view CRCL’s business and growth attractively, but valuation appears elevated.” Oppenheimer initiates at perform rating The investment firm did not set a price target for the stock. “CRCL is a “clean” way to get exposure to blockchain disruption in money market funds, real estate, consumer payments, and capital markets. More important, USDC will be a compliant, global currency for transactions in the on-chain world.” JPMorgan initiates at perform rating and $80 price target The bank’s price target implies about 56% downside from Friday’s close. “We think highly of the Circle management team and are confident in the outlook for outsized stablecoin and USDC growth. However, we see Circle’s current market capitalization elevated, and we thus initiate coverage with an Underweight rating.”
