Bullish (NYSE:BLSH) shares fell sharply in premarket trading Thursday after the company reported first-quarter results that missed Wall Street expectations on both earnings and revenue.
The stock declined 6.48% before the opening bell following the release of the results.
Company Posts Wider Quarterly Loss
Bullish reported an adjusted loss per share of -$3.85 for the first quarter, significantly below the analyst consensus forecast of positive earnings of $0.16 per share.
Adjusted revenue totaled $92.8 million, also missing analyst expectations of $94 million.
The company recorded a net loss of $604.9 million, or -$3.85 per diluted share, compared with a loss of $348.6 million, or -$3.04 per share, in the same period a year earlier.
Digital asset sales fell to $51.8 billion from $80.2 billion in the prior-year quarter.
Adjusted Profitability Metrics Improve
Despite the headline miss, Bullish reported stronger adjusted profitability measures during the quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA increased to $35.1 million from $13.2 million a year earlier, while adjusted net income improved to $20.3 million from $2.1 million.
Adjusted transaction revenue, however, declined to $38.0 million from $42.0 million in the first quarter of 2025.
Equiniti Acquisition Seen as Strategic Expansion
Chief executive Tom Farley emphasized the company’s long-term growth strategy following the earnings release.
“We’re pleased with our Q1 results and we’re even more excited about what comes next,” Farley said. “With the proposed acquisition of Equiniti, we will have all three elements required to become a powerhouse leading the blockchain era: end-to-end tokenization services, a unified transfer agent ledger, and broad blue-chip issuer relationships.”
Bullish recently announced a definitive agreement to acquire Equiniti for $4.2 billion in a deal aimed at building what it described as the first fully integrated blockchain-enabled issuer services platform.
Bitcoin Options Business Continues to Expand
The company also said it strengthened its position in the cryptocurrency derivatives market, becoming the second-largest exchange for Bitcoin options.
Trading volume in BTC options reached $11.6 billion during April 2026, while Bullish captured a 14% share of open interest in the market.
Full-Year Guidance Maintained
Bullish reaffirmed its financial outlook for full-year 2026.
The company continues to project subscription, services and other revenue between $220 million and $250 million, while adjusted operating expenses are expected to range between $210 million and $230 million.