Compass Point Initiates Coverage of Bullish, Assigns Neutral Rating and $45 Price Target
Wall Street research firm Compass Point has initiated coverage of Bullish (BLSH), the parent company of CoinDesk, giving the crypto platform a neutral rating with a $45 price target.
Analyst Ed Engel expressed caution over the stock’s current valuation and timing for U.S. market entry, even as Bullish’s low-fee structure could allow it to gradually capture market share from Coinbase (COIN).
“We see limited opportunity for Bullish to enter the U.S. market until the CLARITY Act passes,” Engel wrote. The legislation, which seeks to clarify the regulatory boundary between the CFTC and SEC, may not be enacted until early 2026.
Even post-legislation, New York’s BitLicense framework could present hurdles. Bullish’s approach—allowing the company to act as its own market maker via an automated market maker (AMM)—may raise conflict-of-interest concerns for regulators.
Engel noted that a more favorable buying opportunity could emerge in the next 1–2 quarters, pointing to the stock’s current 110x multiple on 2026 projected EBITDA.
The company also maintains a $2.7 billion crypto treasury, largely in bitcoin (BTC), linking the stock’s performance closely to bitcoin’s well-known volatility.
The $45 price target assumes bitcoin reaches $160,000 and incorporates a 50% chance that Bullish successfully enters the U.S. market—an expansion that could add roughly $12 per share in value.
Bullish went public in August at $37 per share, surging to close at $68 on its first day. Shares were down 4.6% Wednesday to $59.20.
