Why Core Scientific Stock Stumbled Today
Key Points
The pundit in question now feels the shares only rate a hold.
He's discouraged by the lack of dynamism in colocation deals.
- 10 stocks we like better than Core Scientific ›
Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ) didn't start the stock trading week on a high note. The crypto miner and data center operator saw its share price tank by almost 9% on an analyst's recommendation downgrade.
Hold on a moment, says analyst
The pundit behind the downgrade was Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' Bill Papanastasiou, who moved his assessment of Core Scientific down one peg to market perform (hold, in other words) from his previous outperform (buy). He also reduced his price target to $25 per share from $28.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks »
Image source: Getty Images.
Like other legacy cryptocurrency miners, Core Scientific has effected a strategic pivot into artificial intelligence (AI) data center operations. According to reports, Papanastasiou wrote in his update that this effort has been halting lately.
He said that the company has gone roughly 17 months without signing a new colocation lease for this part of its operations. It's also committed to spending around $2 billion on acquisitions and development activities this year, but lacks the fresh business that could meaningfully support this.
The great AI data center race
To this analysis, I would add that, since the miner-to-data-center-operator pivot is now common in Core Scientific's industry, the company feels like it's notably lagging some of its peers.
While I still believe this strategy is viable and potentially very lucrative, I think shareholders will need some indication of progress and dynamism soon if this company and its stock aren't to be left behind.
Should you buy stock in Core Scientific right now?
Before you buy stock in Core Scientific, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Core Scientific wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $377,990!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,269,518!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 896% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 206% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of July 27, 2026.
Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
