MicroStrategy soars amid bitcoin boom as crypto stockpile hits $12B

MicroStrategy (MSTR), the company co-founded by Michael Saylor that was once considered a slow-growth enterprise software stock, has seen its price jump recently thanks to the company’s massive exposure to bitcoin. Last week, the shares crossed the $1,000 price tag and are now trading around the $1,300 mark, with Bitcoin itself also seeing an increase of about 50% year-to-date. The latter seems mostly due to regulators’ approval of the first post price exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, and investors looking toward the upcoming halving, which should slow Bitcoin’s supply growth.

BITCOIN EXPOSURE: In a recent regulatory filing, MicroStrategy announced that, during the period between February 15 and February 25, the company acquired approximately 3,000 bitcoins for $155.4M in cash, at an average price of approximately $51,813 per bitcoin. The bitcoin purchases were made using proceeds from the issuance and sale of shares under the company’s existing sales agreement and excess cash. As of February 25, MicroStrategy held an aggregate of approximately 193,000 bitcoins, which were acquired at an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6.09B and an average purchase price of approximately $31,544 per bitcoin.

On February 28, the provider of enterprise analytics and mobility software also reported that president and CEO Phong Le sold 10,000 shares of the company. The transaction was executed at an average price of $966.33 per share, resulting in a total value of $9,663,300.

Of note, MicroStrategy, led by its chairman Michael Saylor, has acquired 193,000 bitcoins since 2020, making it the largest institutional holder of BTC worldwide. As Bitcoin soars, so has Saylor’s investment. On February 28, Bitcoin reached a price of $63,918, the first time it topped the $60,000 level since November 2021. At that time, Saylor’s position was worth $12.3B, which was more than two times what he bought it for.

BULLISH ON MICROSTRATEGY: Last week, Benchmark initiated coverage of MicroStrategy with a Buy rating and $990 price target. The firm’s sum-of-the-parts analysis combines its estimate of the year-end 2025 value of the company’s bitcoin holdings and its estimate of the year-end 2025 value of its business intelligence software business, the firm told investors. The price of MicroStrategy shares is highly correlated to the price of bitcoin, though the company’s use of leverage to amass its bitcoin holdings can magnify its gains relative to those realized by the cryptocurrency, Benchmark added.

Meanwhile, two other Wall Street firms recently upped their price targets on the stock. TD Cowen raised the firm’s price target on MicroStrategy to $870 from $820, keeping an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm noted MicroStrategy acquired 3000 more Bitcoin and said this is not a short-term trading strategy but rather reflects a belief that bitcoin will ultimately prove a superior store of value.

Also maintaining a Buy-rating on the name, Canaccord raised the firm’s price target on MicroStrategy to $975 from $617. The firm said that with the upcoming BTC halving event in April, combined with steady inflows into U.S. BTC spot ETF funds, it sees a favorable supply demand setup for Bitcoin for the next few months.

PRICE ACTION: In Monday morning trading, shares of MicroStrategy have gained about 20% to $1,290.