Figure shares sink 9% as $1B lending milestone meets market volatility
It's been a volatile week for the shares of Figure Technology Solutions as crypto-linked stocks react to shifting investor sentiment and early signs of a broader market rebound.
FIGR stock fell more than 9% in early Thursday trading, slipping back to the mid-$32 range after climbing near $37 earlier in the week. The earlier gains were driven by momentum in crypto-related equities and growing investor interest in companies tied to blockchain-based lending.
Today's decline extended Figure's more than 20% year-to-date slide, reflecting ongoing uncertainty around both crypto markets and higher-growth technology stocks. The sharp swings highlight how sensitive the stock has become to changes in market sentiment.
Figure Technology Solutions (FIGR) stock opens sharply lower on Thursday. Source: Yahoo Finance
Despite renewed volatility, Figure has attracted positive coverage from Bernstein, which said the stock is undervalued given its tokenized credit platform and growing loan volumes. Bernstein assigned Figure a $67 price target, implying roughly 2x upside from current levels.
Figure Technology is a fintech company that uses blockchain to originate and manage consumer loans, including home equity products. CEO Michael Tannenbaum recently revealed that the company processed more than $1 billion in monthly volume for the first time.
Source: Michael Tannenbaum
Related: Figure Technology stock crashes 20% following mixed Q4 earnings
Crypto market sentiment shift underway
Figure is not alone in seeing volatility this year, as crypto-linked stocks have been pressured by falling digital asset prices and shifting risk sentiment tied to geopolitics and interest rates.
However, a separate Bernstein note said many of these names, including Robinhood Markets, Circle and Coinbase, along with Figure, may be nearing a bottom or have already bottomed ahead of first-quarter earnings. At their lowest, these and other crypto stocks were down more than 50% from last year's highs.
That shift has coincided with a rebound in crypto prices, with Bitcoin recently climbing toward $80,000 and Ether moving above $2,400.
Figure expects to release Q1 earnings on May 11, after the market close. The average forecast is for earnings of $0.22 per share, on revenue of $160.3 million, according to Yahoo Finance.
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