Key Highlights

● Morgan Stanley raised its Coinbase price target to $258 from $250 on Friday while keeping an Equal Weight rating.

● Bitcoin bounced on Friday, trading around $82,420 late in the US session, though it remained lower for the week.

● US spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds saw about $244 million in outflows on Thursday and roughly $729 million over two days.

● Morgan Stanley also raised its Robinhood target to $160 from $150 but downgraded Gemini to Underweight.

Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN) was on investors' radar on Friday after Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) analyst Michael Cyprys raised his price target on the cryptocurrency exchange to $258 from $250 while keeping an Equal Weight rating, according to a market report. Cyprys suggested that market concerns about broker cash balances and the impact of artificial intelligence on the business could be overdone.

An Equal Weight rating signals that the analyst expects the stock to perform roughly in line with the other companies he covers, so the call was a tweak rather than a change of heart. Still, a higher target from a major bank tends to draw attention, particularly when it arrives on a day when the underlying asset class is recovering.

Bitcoin finds its footing

Bitcoin bounced on Friday. It traded around $82,420 late in the US session, up about $684, according to market data. That followed a dip toward $80,300 on Thursday. The rebound was incomplete, though: bitcoin was still lower for the week, having started near $84,497, and futures failed to hold above $82,500. Ether traded around $2,480 to $2,500.

Fund flows were soft. US spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds saw about $244 million in outflows on Thursday and roughly $729 million over two days, putting them on course for their first weekly outflow in four weeks, according to market data.

Why Coinbase tracks crypto sentiment

Coinbase earns much of its revenue from transaction fees, which rise and fall with trading activity and crypto prices. It also earns interest-linked income from stablecoin reserves and customer balances, plus fees from staking and custody services. That mix means the stock is often seen as a proxy for the health of the broader digital-asset market.

Morgan Stanley also raised its target on Robinhood Markets (NASDAQ:HOOD) to $160 from $150 with an Overweight rating, showing a constructive stance on retail trading platforms. Not all of the firm's crypto views were positive, however. Morgan Stanley downgraded crypto exchange Gemini (NASDAQ:GEMI) to Underweight, saying a better crypto market "may not be enough to resolve Gemini's challenges with scale and distribution."

The market mood

Equities rose broadly on Friday. The S&P 500 gained 46.18 points to 7,811.54, the Nasdaq Composite added 172.83 points to 27,366.17 and the Dow rose 423.31 points to 51,654.95. Financials were among the stronger sectors. Trading volume was light, at 14.37 billion shares against a 20-day average of 17.76 billion.

Gold, often seen as a rival store of value to bitcoin, had a strong day, with December futures rising $59.30 to $4,216.30 an ounce. Macro pressures remain, with the 10-year Treasury yield near a 24-year high and the Federal Reserve signaling more rate increases. Fed Governor Christopher Waller said Thursday, "The hikes do not need to come at consecutive meetings, but they should be in place in an acceptable period of time." Higher rates tend to weigh on speculative assets, including cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin ETF Flows and Wednesday's Inflation Data Set Crypto's Next Test

Stock markets are open Monday, Columbus Day, while US bond markets are closed. September consumer prices on Wednesday, October 14, could shift rate expectations, which often ripple through crypto markets. Bank earnings run October 13 to 16, including results from brokers and exchanges such as Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) on October 15. The Fed's next meeting is October 27 to 28. Crypto investors will watch whether spot bitcoin ETF flows turn positive and whether bitcoin can reclaim levels above $82,500.