Bitcoin is back in a bull market by many accounts and is poised to continue its 2023 rally as the rest of crypto comes under regulatory scrutiny. Equity investors interested in riding bitcoin’s current uptrend should consider buying shares of Microstrategy , the enterprise analytics firm and bitcoin proxy, according to Berenberg Capital Markets. The firm initiated coverage of the company Thursday with a buy rating and a $430 price target, which is more than 34% from where the stock closed that day. “We believe a combination of circumstances, evolution, and timing may enable bitcoin during the next few months to reclaim much of the attention it ceded to other crypto tokens and projects during the past couple of years and much of the enthusiasm it has lost amidst the ongoing ‘crypto winter,'” Mark Palmer, an analyst on Berenberg’s software and IT team, said in a note. Specifically, he mentioned the U.S.’s lack of a crypto-specific regulatory framework and the current regulatory crackdown on crypto companies, decreasing dominance of the dollar as the global reserve currency, and the approach of the bitcoin halving . Microstrategy offers “the most attractive means” through which investors can express a view on bitcoin, Palmer said, citing its correlation of 0.90 to the crypto asset for his stance. The mandates of many institutional investors preclude them from purchasing bitcoin directly. “Bitcoin’s price reached record highs after each of the last three halvings; its price has tended to bottom out and start to rally 15 months prior to each halving,” Palmer said. “MSTR’s stock offers a leveraged means through which investors can take advantage of that event.” Microstrategy is up 125% year-to-date, after ending 2022 down 74%. Bitcoin has risen 77% this year.
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