Morgan Stanley Calls Riot, Other Powered-Shell Stocks a Buying Opportunity

Morgan Stanley raises its Riot target

Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Riot Platforms to $41 from $35.50, according to TIKR. The bank also characterized Riot and other powered-shell providers as a buying opportunity.

Cipher target falls as its rating is retained

Morgan Stanley analyst Stephen Byrd cut his Cipher Digital price target to $27.50 from $51.50 while retaining an Overweight rating, according to TIKR. Cipher Digital rose 4% after the revision, while Riot gained 6%.

Other powered-shell shares also rose

CleanSpark gained 12%, TeraWulf rose 9% and Core Scientific advanced 8%, TIKR reported, describing the moves as occurring during a broad market rally. The gains coincided with Morgan Stanley’s positive view of powered-shell providers, although TIKR noted that TeraWulf and Core Scientific were rising in a broad market rally.

Lease revenue is central to the outlook

TIKR reported that analysts expect Cipher Digital’s revenue to fall to $160 million in 2026 as mining shrinks, then rise to $840 million in 2027 as its leases start paying. Cipher traded at 4.7 times forward sales at Friday’s close, compared with a three-year average of 11.4 times, according to the report.

The report contrasted how the companies fund development. On Nov. 4, Riot leased its entire 910-megawatt Corsicana campus to a frontier AI lab for about $28 billion over 15 years. Riot puts Corsicana’s construction cost at about $6 million per IT megawatt and says it paid $2 million up front. TIKR said Cipher puts its builds at $9 million to $11 million per critical IT megawatt and that Cipher sold $850 million of convertible notes in October to fund more of Barber Lake.

Evidence remains limited for a broader sector view

The accessible passages support Morgan Stanley’s positive assessment of Riot and other powered-shell providers, as well as the price-target changes for Riot and Cipher; the full MT Newswires article is member-restricted in the supplied record. They do not provide a complete sector-wide valuation comparison or independently confirm the operating and financial assumptions behind the powered-shell thesis.