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Shares of Strategy (MSTR), previously known as MicroStrategy, fell about 6% on Thursday and traded near $109.
The decline came as pressure mounted on the company’s bitcoin treasury strategy amid a sharp drop in its preferred stock, insider selling activity, and a softer cryptocurrency backdrop.
The immediate concern for investors centered on Strategy’s Stretch preferred stock, STRC, which fell to a record low of $87.
The decline is significant because STRC now trades below its $100 par value, forcing the company to pause its at-the-market issuance program, a key funding mechanism used to raise cash for bitcoin purchases.
Without access to that capital-raising channel, Strategy’s ability to continue expanding its bitcoin holdings has become more constrained.
Preferred stock decline disrupts bitcoin acquisition strategy
Strategy’s bitcoin accumulation model has largely depended on issuing preferred securities and other capital instruments to fund additional purchases of the cryptocurrency.
The company recently expanded concerns around that model after selling bitcoin for the first time since it began accumulating the digital asset in 2022.
In late May, Strategy sold 32 bitcoin for approximately $2.5 million to fund dividend payments on STRC.
The transaction attracted attention because Chairman Michael Saylor had previously maintained a firm position against selling the company’s bitcoin holdings.
Analysts at Benchmark and TD Cowen have pushed back against concerns that the transaction signals a broader deterioration in the company’s strategy.
However, the sale represented a notable departure from the approach that investors had long associated with Strategy’s bitcoin treasury operations.
Additional competitive pressure has emerged from rival products in the preferred securities market.
Strive’s SATA preferred stock currently trades above $99 and offers a yield of 13.69%, drawing income-oriented investors away from Strategy’s preferred securities.
Market maker QCP estimated that Strategy has approximately 7.5 months of liquidity remaining to fund preferred dividend payments.
According to the firm, the company could eventually face difficult decisions involving additional capital raising, further shareholder dilution, or additional bitcoin sales.
Federal Reserve outlook and bitcoin weakness weigh on sentiment
The broader macroeconomic environment has also added pressure to Strategy shares.
The Federal Reserve voted unanimously on June 17 to leave benchmark interest rates unchanged at 3.50% to 3.75%.
However, policymakers adopted a more hawkish tone, with nine of 18 Federal Open Market Committee members projecting at least one rate increase before the end of 2026.
The outlook weighed on bitcoin and crypto-related equities, even as broader US equity markets advanced.
With bitcoin trading near $64,000, Strategy’s holdings currently carry a paper loss of roughly $11,658 per coin compared with the company’s average acquisition cost, further dampening investor sentiment toward the stock.
Insider sales add to investor concerns
Investor caution has also been reinforced by insider selling activity.
Director Jarrod Patten exercised options on 1,500 Class A shares at a strike price of $18.236 and sold the shares at around $134 each, generating approximately $200,000 in proceeds.
Over the past three months, Patten has sold 55,750 Strategy shares for total proceeds approaching $9 million.
He continues to hold 28,406 Class A shares and 44,250 unexercised director options.
Earlier this year, Chief Executive Officer Phong Le, Chief Financial Officer Andrew Kang, and former Executive Vice President Wei-Ming Shao also sold millions of dollars’ worth of Strategy stock.
With STRC trading below par and bitcoin purchases effectively paused, investors are increasingly focused on whether Strategy can restore access to its preferred-share funding model and sustain its long-standing bitcoin accumulation strategy.
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