Riot Platforms stock has another 22% upside: HCW analyst

  • Riot Platforms reported strong results for its Q1 last week.
  • HCW analyst raised his PT on Riot Platforms stock today.
  • Mike Colonnese explained his bullish view in a research note.

Shares of Riot Platforms Inc have already more than tripled this year but an H.C. Wainwright analyst says further upside will unravel moving forward.

Riot Platforms stock has upside to $13.50

On Monday, Mike Colonnese reiterated his buy rating on the bitcoin miner and raised his price target to $13.50 a share – up another 22% from here.

His bullish note on Riot Platforms stock arrives only days after the company said a number of its key operating metrics, including hash rate, pushed to a record high in its first quarter.

With strong balance sheet and significant runway for future mining expansion, RIOT is well positioned to outpace growth of network hash rate over the next year.

Riot sees its aggregate hash rate to climb from 10.5 EH/s in Q1 to 12.5 EH/s in the back half of 2023.

Riot Platforms revenue was up 22% sequentially

At $73 million, the Nasdaq-listed firm came in shy of consensus estimates for revenue in its recently concluded quarter.

But the HCW analyst remains constructive on Riot Platforms stock since the revenue still represented a whopping 22% sequential growth. His research note also said:

A premium is warranted given Riot Platforms’ industry leading operating capacity, low electricity costs, and strong balance sheet.

Other notable figures in the company’s earnings release include a 51% year-on-year increase in bitcoin produced and mining margins that more than doubled versus the previous quarter. Note that the bitcoin miner has already touched $13.50 (Mike Colonnese’s price target) once this year.

The post Riot Platforms stock has another 22% upside: HCW analyst appeared first on CoinJournal.

US default will see Bitcoin become a more trusted safe haven asset than the dollar, survey says

  • Retail investors would prefer Bitcoin over the dollar in case of a default, a new survey says.
  • A US default could be here as early as June 1, experts have warned.
  • Standard Chartered analyst Geoff Kendrick previously predicted a 70% jump for Bitcoin price in case of a US default.

A new survey has found that retail investors would prefer to buy Bitcoin (BTC) over the dollar in the event of a US default.

According to the report, while gold and Treasury’s ranked higher on the list of trusted safe haven assets in case of a US default, BTC was seen as the third best asset, ahead of the US dollar.

Retail investors would buy BTC over the dollar

The results were from a survey conducted by Bloomberg’s Markets Live Pulse. The researchers had asked investors to indicate what they would buy were the US government to spiral to a debt ceiling.

Gold was the top pick as 51.7% of professional investors and 45.7% of retail investors going for the precious metal. A significant percentage chose Treasurys, with 14% and 15.1% of professionals and retail investors respectively showing faith with the asset class.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin ranked third among the responses as 7.8% of professional investors and 11.3% of retail investors picked it over the dollar. Per the survey, about 7.8% of professional investors and 10.2% of retail investors said they would still buy the dollar.

Bitcoin price predictions in case of US default

The US faces a default that could hit as early as 1 June 2023 should lawmakers fail to strike a deal to lift the $31.4 trillion debt limit. Stock investors were on Monday upbeat on a possible deal. However, stocks were mainly weak as reports of no consensus on the cards yet emerged.

Bitcoin on the other hand remained poised above $27,400 as analysts projected a potential decline to support levels seen last week or lower. However, with the BTC price having rode the banking crisis to break above $31,000, it is possible a default could provide fresh fuel for more gains.

As CoinJournal recently highlighted, this Bitcoin price prediction had been put forth by Standard Chartered analyst Geoff Kendrick. In his prediction, the head of FX research at Standard Chartered said the BTC price could explode by 70% in the event of a default.

While he suggested an initial drop on the day, or two or week, of the default would likely clip bulls by $5k or so, the analyst believes the price of the digital gold could see a new $20,000 leg.

The post US default will see Bitcoin become a more trusted safe haven asset than the dollar, survey says appeared first on CoinJournal.

Bitcoin roundup: active addresses fall, market makers scale back, price softens


Key Takeaways

  • Number of addresses containing one Bitcoin or more crosses one million
  • Bitcoin relatively subdued despite trading at 2-month low
  • Two prominent market markers are scaling back activity in the space
  • Active addresses show notable decline in last week

 

We wrote last week that nearly one million addresses on the Bitcoin network now contain at least one Bitcoin. That mark has now been passed, as the below chart shows. 

As dramatic as that sounds, it doesn’t equate to one million people, as aggregate wallets exist (such as exchange wallets), not to mention the fact that one person often has more than one address. 

Looking beyond this quirky threshold, there has not been too much of note occurring in the markets in recent weeks. The market has been somewhat soft, Bitcoin trading at $27,300 as I write this, a two-month low. It is down 7% over the past ten days, but that is not exactly a dramatic decline by Bitcoin’s standards. 

Looking at activity on the network does show more notable developments, however. The below chart shows a perceptible break downwards when analysing the 7-day exponential moving average (EMA) of active addresses on the network.

It is the biggest decline in activity over the last year. It is not immediately obvious what is causing it, but with the 7-day EMA running roughly between 800,000 and 1,000,000 addresses, the fall towards 600,000 does stand out. 

Regarding possible catalysts, there has not been much beyond the continued big story of the year: the regulatory crackdown from the US. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the exchange would consider the UAE as an international hub, as the company reels from the punitive measures levelled against the industry in recent times – including a Wells notice served to Coinbase in March. 

Congressman Brad Sherman was the latest lawmaker to slam the industry, making some startling comparisons that haven’t exactly gone down well in the industry:

“Peru is way ahead of us (the US) in cocaine production. China is way ahead of us in organ harvesting. We don’t need to keep up on those things and we don’t need to keep up on crypto”. 

Regardless of whether you agree or not, the industry is feeling the pinch of this hostile stance in the US. Last week, two prominent crypto market makers, Jane Street and Jump Crypto, announced they were scaling back their market making activity.

This amounts to a blow to markets that are already very thin. Indeed, we have written multiple times what role the thin liquidy has played in Bitcoin’s run-up this year. In April, crypto profits, prices all hit their highest marks since June 2022. But so did volatility, as there has been a dearth of capital in the space ever since Alameda, one of the largest market makers, evaporated amid the FTX crash in November. And that liquidity is only going to get thinner again with the news out of Jane Street and Jump Crypto. 

With thin liquidity comes high volatility, as it takes less capital to move prices. The below chart shows that volatility has fallen off since March, but is still trading above 40% on an annualised basis and up markedly since the start of the year. 

While Bitcoin’s price fall from close to $30,000 to where it currently sits at $27,200 is nothing to write home about, the shallow nature of the markets hint that more volatility could be on the way. 

 

The post Bitcoin roundup: active addresses fall, market makers scale back, price softens appeared first on CoinJournal.

Bitcoin price prediction: analyst’s BTC forecast amid bulls attempts to reclaim key area

  • Bitcoin price has recovered from its dip to $25,800, with price currently above $27,400.
  • BTC could continue to bounce into the $28,000-$30,000 range as broader market sentiment improves.
  • However, an analyst’s Bitcoin price prediction suggests bad news for BTC if $27,600 becomes new resistance level.

The price of Bitcoin as of May 15, 2023 9:50 am ET is $27,405, with BTC up 2% in the past 24 hours. 911.81. While Bitcoin could yet break above a key resistance level and target old support above $28,000, a popular crypto analyst says failing to breach the said supply wall could see the digital gold retreat to a closely watched support level.

Analyst shares Bitcoin price prediction as markets eye new bounce

The outlook for Bitcoin is however still broadly bullish long term, particularly after the crypto sector navigated the collapse of FTX. The current US regulatory environment remains a key concern for the ecosystem though and this as well as continued correlation with the stock market could prove another wobbly trajectory for crypto prices.

According to crypto analyst Rekt Capital, Bitcoin price could dip past the largely anticipated buffer zone at $25,000 if current levels don’t hold. 

Although the stock market looks poised for gains as investors see a debt limit deal and inflation fears across corporate America easing, a flip in sentiment both in the equities and in crypto could send BTC below $25k.

Rekt thinks the flagship crypto’s price could fall to the $20,000 level. He tweeted early Monday as BTC/USD bounced from lows of $25,800:

“First, #BTC failed to reclaim the $28800 level on the Weekly (orange). And then $BTC Weekly Closed below $27600, failing to hold it as support (black). Turn $27600 into resistance and this could enable further downside into the low $20,000s.”

The analyst explained his Bitcoin price prediction further in another tweet.

“The problem with this #BTC bounce is that it is occurring after a Weekly Close below black support. Such a 1W close is setting BTC up for more downside especially if this rebound is a relief rally. Reject at $27570 (black) would likely force more downside,” he noted.

Below is the analyst’s chart highlighting the price levels, with potential downside wicks beyond the multi-month support line.

Bitcoin price prediction on the weekly chart. Source: Rekt Capital on Twitter

On the upside, the key challenge would be around $28,800. Consolidation is likely between $28k and $30k. Above that lies the supply zone near $33,000.

The post Bitcoin price prediction: analyst’s BTC forecast amid bulls attempts to reclaim key area appeared first on CoinJournal.

AltSignals and Polkadot price outlook as Bitcoin bounces above $27k

  • Bitcoin (BTC) price has bounced 2% in the past 24 hours to currently trade above $27,400.
  • Polkadot (DOT) price on the other hand is around $5.40 as bulls assess a critical resistance zone. 
  • As the AltSignals (ASI) presale gathers momentum, we look at what the Bitcoin price prediction could mean for ASI and DOT.

Bitcoin bulls might yet reclaim control above $27,000 after pushing from the brink of fresh collapse when prices dipped under $26,000 last Friday (BTC price indeed touched $25,810 on crypto exchange Coinbase).

As analysts remain bullish on bitcoin price, what does the move to reclaim the uptrend mean for the broader crypto market? What about the AltSignals and Polkadot prices?

Bitcoin price prediction

BTC price is back above $27,000, with bulls having retested resistance above $27,600 in the past 24 hours. The rebound has market experts predicting further resilience for the price of the benchmark cryptocurrency.

The broader expectation is that holding above the $27k level could open up an upside retest of $30k – a key technical level where an upward breakout could put BTC on the path to new year-to-date highs.

Analysts have suggested Bitcoin could yet go parabolic in 2023 as a new bull cycle takes shape ahead of the upcoming BTC halving. 

The important network event is now less than a year away and has historically been bullish for the flagship cryptocurrency. The enthusiasm that could build ahead of the even has the potential to help altcoins tick up too. 

For projects such as Polkadot and AltSignals, a rallying crypto market offers a chance to build momentum.

What is Polkadot?

Polkadot is a blockchain platform that is leading the new trajectory of interoperability. The protocol connects different blockchains, or parachains, allowing for the development of new use cases as chains easily communicate with each other. In this case, Polkadot allows for such uses as running of smart contracts, data storage and token issuance.

As the world of an interoperable Web3 grows, Polkadot’s ecosystem is taking on an even greater outlook as one of the leading blockchain platforms. Interoperability, security and scalability mean the platform is taking on an integral role in the decentralised finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) ecosystem.

While there’s more likely to come from the team, the potential to revolutionise the blockchain space is already possible with cross-blockchain transfers – including across Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Polkadot price prediction

The price of DOT, the native Polkadot token is currently $5.40. The token is in the green on the daily timeframe. However, according to data from CoinGecko, DOT/USD is negative in the past week and month. It’s also down more than 90% from its all-time high of $54.98 reached on 4 November, 2021.

DOT is poised at a critical support area as shown on the daily chart. The immediate targets for buyers are at the tough resistance line marked by the 50 and 200 MA around $5.87 and $6.10. The downside potential for Polkadot price prediction suggests bears can in the short term target the primary support area near $4.22.

What is AltSignals?

AltSignals launched back in 2017 and has grown its popularity as one of the leading trading signals platform in the world. Since rolling out its services, the platform has provided traders with signals for crypto, stocks and forex – with a growing degree of accuracy thanks to its AltAlgo indicator.

Now the platform’s team is looking to take the trading tool to the next level using artificial intelligence and blockchain technology. The new direction for AltSignals involves taking the already successful AltAlgo system and revamping its capabilities via an AI-powered layer. 

AltSignals’ new AI-powered platform and ASI token

AltSignals’ new AI enabled platform is called ActualizeAI and is set to go live for the public in the coming months.

ActualizeAI integrates the capabilities of machine learning via regression and predictive modelling. It also uses natural language processing via AutoML and natural language API, for an artificial intelligence layer that offers reinforcement learning to the trading algorithm.

The result is more accuracy for predicted price patterns from historical data and market trends, offering traders a chance to apply top signals to trades across any market conditions.

To give traders an opportunity to enjoy the features and more from the AI ecosystem, AltSignals has unveiled a cryptocurrency token with the ticker symbol ASI. The token is currently accessible to investors via the AltSignals presale, available here.

AltSignals price: how high will ASI go during the presale

ASI currently sits at $0.015 after jumping from $0.012 when the token launched a few weeks ago. With the current stage of the AltSignals presale about to end, the ASI price will increased by 25% $0.01875.

From here, the price of the ASI token is set to increase by another 25% to $0.021 and will have risen to $0.02274 at the end of stage five of the presale. Thereafter, ASI will list on major cryptocurrency exchanges, with the potential to see a massive increase as demand explodes amid the launch of ActualizeAI.

Can ASI token price reach $1 in 2023?

With the crypto markets’ volatile nature in perspective, it is not possible to say with certainty where the AltSignals price will be at the end of 2023. However, with the project already a successful business, its possible the impetus within the AI ecosystem – highlighted here amid Google’s mega move last week – could propel ASI higher.

The targets of $0.05 and $1 could be achievable in this time frame should the crypto market rally in a new bull cycle catalysed by huge gains for BTC. Building on this momentum could then offer bulls a chance to target the psychological $1. 

On the flipside, a dump in market sentiment, with macroeconomic headwinds prevailing, could see Bitcoin price retreat to lower support levels and trigger a broader slowdown in the altcoin market.

But with ASI largely a bargain at presale prices, investors can still look to tap into the potential gains. The advice is to do your own research and due diligence as you target an investment, noting that various factors can trigger a market sell-off.

If you see ASI as a discount buy at current prices, learn more about the project from the whitepaper or by visiting the AltSignals presale page.

The post AltSignals and Polkadot price outlook as Bitcoin bounces above $27k appeared first on CoinJournal.