It's been a rough Friday for Bullish (BLSH). The stock is down nearly 9% after several analysts trimmed their price targets, and the reason is a familiar one in crypto land: a brutal July that's spilling into August.
On Thursday, Bullish reported second-quarter numbers that were, in the words of one analyst, "impressive" — but the market is looking ahead, and what it sees isn't pretty.
Bullish Revenue Beats Estimates, EPS Misses
Revenue came in at $92.6 million, up 62% year over year and ahead of the $87.81 million analysts were expecting. The growth was driven by record subscription, services, and other revenue of $62.7 million, which helped offset weaker crypto trading activity.
Adjusted EBITDA jumped to $29.5 million from $8.1 million a year earlier. Adjusted net income was $14.3 million, or 9 cents per share — just shy of the 10-cent consensus.
Management also refined its full-year 2026 outlook. The company now expects subscription, services, and other revenue of $225 million to $245 million, with adjusted operating expenses of $225 million to $230 million.
And there's a bigger story here: Bullish is trying to become less of a pure crypto trading shop. The Equiniti acquisition is on track to close in early 2027, and secondary trading of its tokenized shares is already live on its regulated venue.
Analysts Cut Bullish Price Forecasts
Following the results, Rosenblatt Securities analyst Chris Brendler maintained a Neutral rating but cut his price forecast to $30 from $35. JPMorgan's Kenneth Worthington also kept a Neutral rating, trimming his target to $25 from $26.
Weak Start To Third Quarter
Brendler was complimentary about the quarter, noting that revenue trends are outperforming most crypto peers. Higher revenue capture helped offset lower trading volumes, and non-trading revenue posted solid sequential growth. He also pointed to Bullish's strong balance sheet and the planned acquisition as positives, saying the deal could reduce reliance on crypto trading and strengthen the longer-term investment case.
But then came the "but." Brendler warned that third-quarter trading is off to a "very disappointing start." July trading volume fell to $30.7 billion, roughly 40% below June, and crypto activity has weakened further in August.
That weak start suggests consensus estimates may need to come down, he said. Despite stronger spreads and robust non-trading revenue growth, Brendler materially lowered his estimates.
He now projects 2027 adjusted revenue of $391 million and adjusted EBITDA of $144 million, down from his previous $424 million and $195 million. Those numbers are also below current consensus of $427 million in revenue and $218 million in adjusted EBITDA, though Rosenblatt noted that some consensus estimates may already include Equiniti, while its forecasts exclude the acquisition until the deal closes.
At the time of publication on Friday, Bullish shares were down 8.99% at $25.01.
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