Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Circle Internet Group from “strong sell” to “sell,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with a $98.12 price target.
• CRCL shares opened at $72.35 after falling 9.6%; the company recently missed quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.18 per share versus the $0.26 consensus, though revenue rose 6.6% year over year to $701.32 million.
• Company insiders sold approximately 500,657 shares worth $40.6 million during the last quarter, while several hedge funds increased their positions in Circle.

Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Circle Internet Group in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Circle Internet Group from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Circle Internet Group from $138.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho set a $43.00 price target on shares of Circle Internet Group in a report on Monday. Finally, Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Circle Internet Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Circle Internet Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.12.

Circle Internet Group Trading Down 9.6%

CRCL stock opened at $72.35 on Friday. Circle Internet Group has a 52 week low of $49.90 and a 52 week high of $140.00. The company has a market capitalization of $18.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.79 and a beta of 0.73. The firm's 50-day moving average is $87.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.81.

Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.08). Circle Internet Group had a return on equity of 13.58% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $701.32 million during the quarter. During the same period last year, the business earned ($4.48) EPS. Circle Internet Group's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Circle Internet Group will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Circle Internet Group

In related news, Director Danita K. Ostling sold 20,000 shares of Circle Internet Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.65, for a total transaction of $1,233,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $284,083.20. This trade represents a 81.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nikhil Chandhok sold 26,668 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.59, for a total value of $2,122,506.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 715,331 shares in the company, valued at $56,933,194.29. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 500,657 shares of company stock worth $40,557,306. 10.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Circle Internet Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRCL. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Circle Internet Group by 24.6% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 3,970,939 shares of the company's stock valued at $326,292,000 after acquiring an additional 785,213 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Circle Internet Group by 175.0% in the first quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 3,300,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $314,853,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100,000 shares during the last quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. increased its stake in shares of Circle Internet Group by 13.4% in the first quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 2,914,947 shares of the company's stock worth $278,173,000 after purchasing an additional 344,539 shares during the period. SBI Holdings USA Inc. bought a new position in shares of Circle Internet Group in the second quarter worth about $101,084,820. Finally, Accel XI Associates L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Circle Internet Group in the second quarter worth about $56,999,563.

Circle Internet Group Company Profile

Circle Internet Group, Inc is a global financial technology company focused on digital currencies and blockchain-based payments. The company is best known for issuing USD Coin (USDC), a dollar-backed stablecoin designed to maintain a value of one U.S. dollar and support digital transactions, payments, trading and other financial applications. Circle also issues EURC, a euro-backed stablecoin.

Circle provides infrastructure and services for businesses, financial institutions and developers through products such as Circle Mint, which supports the creation, redemption and transfer of its stablecoins, as well as APIs and developer tools for integrating digital-asset payments and blockchain functionality.

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