NEW YORK, January 9, 2026, 13:19 EST — Regular session
- Coinbase shares down about 2% in afternoon trade, lagging a firmer broader market
- Bank of America upgraded the stock to “buy” with a $340 price target
- A filing showed CEO Brian Armstrong sold 40,000 shares under a 10b5-1 plan
Coinbase Global Inc shares fell 2.2% to $240.28 on Friday, extending a choppy week for crypto-linked stocks even after Bank of America upgraded the exchange operator.
The dip matters now because Coinbase has become a quick gauge of risk appetite around crypto, and its results still swing with trading activity. Investors are trying to work out whether new products can smooth revenue when bitcoin cools and retail traders step back.
That question has sharpened as Coinbase pitches itself as more than a spot-crypto broker. The company has been talking up new lines tied to tokenization — putting real-world assets into blockchain-based tokens — and other tools aimed at keeping customers active.
BofA Securities analyst Craig Siegenthaler upgraded Coinbase to “buy” from “neutral” and kept his $340 price target, saying the company’s “product velocity has increased” and its total addressable market, or TAM, is expanding. He also flagged Coinbase’s Base network and wrote that a native token could “raise billions in cash,” though he framed it as a potential path rather than a set plan. (Benzinga)
Separately, a Form 4 filing showed CEO Brian Armstrong exercised options for 40,000 shares at $18.71 and sold 40,000 shares the same day at weighted average prices of about $248.53 to $250.01. The filing said the transactions were made under a Rule 10b5-1 plan — a preset program companies use to schedule insider trades — adopted on August 15, 2025. (SEC)
Bitcoin was down about 0.1% at roughly $90,986, while Strategy fell about 4% and Robinhood was little changed, even as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq trackers edged higher.
Coinbase has been trying to widen its reach beyond crypto, including plans to let users trade stocks and “event contracts” tied to real-world outcomes, which it said would lean on prediction-market operator Kalshi. “We aim to offer the greatest variety of contracts available on one platform,” Max Branzburg, head of consumer and business products at Coinbase, said last month. (Reuters)
But the stock still takes its cues from the basics: crypto prices, volatility and volumes. If trading slows, fee revenue can drop fast, and new products can bring new scrutiny and tougher competition from brokers that already dominate stocks.
Next up is earnings. Coinbase has not confirmed a date for its fourth-quarter report, but MarketBeat estimates a February 12 release after the close; traders will watch for updates on activity levels and any timelines for the broader product rollout. (MarketBeat)
