Crypto prices and US stocks rebounded on Thursday as concerns in the Middle East eased, but Circle (CRCL), Bullish (BLSH) and Coinbase (COIN) all saw significant declines.
Circle fell 9.9% to $85.10 after Compass Point downgraded the stock from neutral to sell and cut its price target by $2 to $77. The brokerage said USDC had held up better than in previous bear cycles, but argued that supply growth was shifting to areas with lower margins. He also said Circle was now trading at 40 times what he called optimistic adjusted EBITDA estimates for 2027, and warned that consensus forecasts for 2026 and 2027 may need to be cut as gross margins contract in the first half of 2026.
The company said more USDC is now present on platforms such as Sky, Binance and Ethena, where revenue sharing agreements reduce Circle’s profitability. In bear markets, this can be important. A stablecoin can maintain its supply, but the profit pool may decrease if more of that supply is in low-yielding channels.
The bull also faced selling pressure, falling 6.5% to $36.12 after Rosenblatt downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy while maintaining his $39 price target. Rosenblatt said Bullish now trades at 28 times consensus adjusted EBITDA, a premium to peers including Coinbase and Robinhood (HOOD), and added that estimates become more vulnerable as crypto activity weakens and the IPO-related boost in non-trading revenue fades.
Bitcoin meanwhile, has surpassed the $72,000 mark and is trading at its highest level in over three weeks. The move appears linked to what markets view as positive news regarding the US-Iran conflict. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday he had asked his cabinet to launch direct negotiations with Lebanon.
The development drew attention because senior U.S. officials said envoy Steve Witkoff had asked Netanyahu to reduce strikes in Lebanon and open negotiations. It also marks a shift from President Donald Trump’s previous stance, after he gave Netanyahu the option to continue the war in Lebanon shortly before announcing a ceasefire with Iran on Tuesday.
The Nasdaq rose 0.8% and the S&P 500 rose 0.6%.
