Coinbase Global Inc. shares jumped 14% in the extended session Thursday after the crypto-trading platform swung to a quarterly profit and reported revenue well above Wall Street expectations, saying it benefited from “risk on” activity in the markets.
Coinbase
COIN,
earned $273 million, or $1.04 a share, in the fourth quarter, versus a loss of $557 million, or $2.46 a share, in the year-ago quarter.
Sales rose to $954 million from $629 million a year ago.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected Coinbase to report earnings of 2 cents a share on sales of $826 million.
In a letter to shareholders, Coinbase executives said that they saw “a sharp increase in crypto asset volatility,” akin to early 2023, and in crypto asset prices.
That was mostly thanks to around approvals for a bitcoin spot ETF and “broad expectations around improving macroeconomic conditions in 2024, which contributed broadly in the capital markets to ‘risk on’ activity,” it said.
“Coinbase is a fundamentally stronger company today than a year ago, and we are in a strong financial position to capitalize on the opportunities ahead,” the company said in the letter.
Coinbase said it continued to fight for “clarity” in the U.S. markets in relation to crypto, and that it is supporting the crypto-focused Fairshake
Super PAC and affiliates “with the goal of electing pro-crypto candidates in the 2024 election and by supporting Stand With Crypto’s efforts to engage 1 million crypto advocates and help drive pro-crypto policies.”
Coinbase is one of the main supporters of Fairshake, and the PAC recently came out in opposition to Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, who is running in the California Senate primary, scheduled for early next month.
The company guided for first-quarter subscription and services revenue between $410 million and $480 million, and that it has generated about $320 million of transaction revenue through Tuesday.
Expenses with technology and development as well as general and administrative expenses in the first quarter are seen increasing to $600 million and $650 million, Coinbase said.
Shares of Coinbase ended the regular trading day up 3.3%. The stock has skyrocketed 140% in the past 12 months, compared with an advance of about 21% for the S&P 500 index
SPX
in the same period. So far this year, however, the shares are down about 5%, contrasting with gains of more than 5% for the broader index.
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