Bakkt Gets Buy Rating with 44% Potential Upside on Stablecoin Expansion: Clear Street

Clear Street has initiated coverage of Bakkt (BKKT) with a buy rating and a $14 price target, signaling 44% upside after a steep year-to-date decline. Shares were up 0.7% at $9.83 in early Wednesday trading, though the stock has fallen more than 60% this year compared with an 11% gain for the S&P 500.

The company has streamlined operations, selling non-core units such as Loyalty and Custody to focus on its blockchain-native payments platform. Bakkt now operates on two core areas: Crypto Services for institutions and its Digital Transfer and Remittance (DTR) platform, which provides stablecoin payment infrastructure. Trading at just 2.9x projected 2027 EV/EBITDA, the firm is positioned to capture share in the $190 trillion cross-border payments market, analysts led by Brian Dobson said.

Clear Street projects 14% annual revenue growth through 2027, with DTR driving scale and profitability. Stablecoin transactions deliver nearly double the margins of crypto services, supporting 66% annual gross profit growth. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to turn positive by early 2026 and reach $49 million in 2027 after a $60 million cost reset. DTR is set to expand to 36 countries by late 2025 and over 90 by 2026, with transaction volume forecast at $2.6 billion by 2027.

Bakkt’s institutional-first approach targets regulated partners like remittance firms and neobanks, leveraging its BitLicense and 50+ state money transmitter licenses for compliance and rapid scaling. With high-margin stablecoin flows, operating leverage, and potential re-rating to peer multiples, Clear Street views Bakkt as an underappreciated stablecoin infrastructure play. Rival broker Benchmark also initiated coverage with a buy rating and $13 target on Monday.