Strategy continues to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into supporting its STRC perpetual preferred stock, but the security has yet to consistently return to its $100 par value.
The company has now spent approximately $635.2 million repurchasing STRC, also known as Stretch. While the preferred stock has recovered significantly from its June low near $71, it was still trading around $97.34, leaving it below Strategy’s targeted $100 level.
The latest round of buybacks totaled $151.8 million, with Strategy purchasing 1.56 million STRC shares at an average price of $97.48 each.
At the same time, Strategy has returned to Bitcoin accumulation after a roughly two-month pause, showing that the company is once again balancing its preferred stock obligations with its broader Bitcoin treasury strategy.
Strategy’s STRC Buybacks Reach $635.2 Million
Strategy introduced a $1 billion preferred stock repurchase authorization in late June under its Digital Credit Capital Framework.
The framework also allocated another $1 billion for common stock buybacks and increased STRC’s annualized dividend rate to 12%. It also included provisions that could allow Strategy to sell up to $1.25 billion worth of Bitcoin if additional capital were required.
Since introducing the program, Strategy has steadily increased its support for STRC as the preferred shares recovered from their June lows.
During the week ending July 26, Strategy spent approximately $25 million repurchasing STRC while the shares remained well below their $100 par value.
At the time, the company had built its dollar reserve to approximately $3.75 billion while keeping its Bitcoin holdings unchanged at 843,775 BTC.
Strategy later sold 1,638 BTC for approximately $104.7 million between July 27 and Aug. 2. Part of that capital was redirected toward preferred stock dividends and STRC repurchases.
By the latest reporting period, Strategy was willing to pay an average of $97.48 per STRC share, putting its repurchase price less than $3 below par.
Strategy Raises $602.8 Million Through MSTR Shares
Strategy funded its latest transactions through its at-the-market stock program.
The company sold approximately 4.53 million MSTR shares, generating net proceeds of $602.8 million.
Of that total, approximately $369.7 million was used to purchase Bitcoin, while $151.8 million went toward STRC repurchases. Another $50.7 million was allocated to STRC dividends, and $30 million was added to Strategy’s USD Cash account.
As of Aug. 30, Strategy reported approximately $1.61 billion in USD Cash, along with another $5.1 billion held in its USD Reserve.
The allocation shows that Bitcoin has once again become a major destination for capital raised through Strategy’s common stock program, even as the company continues spending heavily to support STRC.
STRC Still Struggles to Reach $100
Although STRC has recovered substantially from below $75 in late June, Strategy has yet to establish the preferred stock above $100 on a sustained basis.
That level is particularly important for the company’s broader capital strategy.
Strategy CEO Phong Le previously indicated that the company plans to resume issuing more STRC once the preferred stock returns to par. The proceeds could then help finance additional Bitcoin purchases.
STRC was trading around $87 when Le discussed the strategy in mid-July.
Since then, Strategy has taken several steps to make STRC more attractive to income-focused investors.
Shareholders approved a move to semi-monthly dividend payments in June, with distributions scheduled for the 15th and final day of each month.
Strategy later increased STRC’s annualized dividend rate to 12% as part of its broader capital framework.
Despite STRC remaining below par, institutional interest has remained strong.
By late July, STRC had reportedly become the largest holding across three major US preferred stock ETFs. Those funds collectively held approximately $756 million worth of STRC.
Institutional holdings had increased by 105%, while the share held by retail investors declined from 78% to 71%.
Strive’s SATA Creates Competition for STRC
Strategy is also facing competition from Strive’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock, known as SATA.
SATA offers investors a higher annualized dividend rate than STRC.
For September, Strive maintained SATA’s annualized dividend rate at 13%, compared with STRC’s 12%.
The payment schedules are also different.
SATA distributes cash dividends every business day, while STRC pays shareholders twice per month.
Strive introduced daily SATA distributions on June 16 after moving away from monthly payments. According to the company, the change made SATA the first US-listed security to distribute cash dividends every business day.
For September, Strive declared daily payments of $0.0516 per share across 21 business days. That works out to approximately $1.0836 per share for the month, equivalent to a 13% annualized dividend rate.
SATA has also managed to stay close to its $100 par value for more than a week.
That stability has allowed Strive to continue issuing SATA shares through its at-the-market program and use the proceeds to finance additional Bitcoin purchases.
SATA Helps Fund Strive’s Bitcoin Strategy
Strive has increasingly relied on SATA as part of its Bitcoin accumulation model.
In June, the company purchased 759 BTC for approximately $50 million, with SATA contributing a significant portion of the capital used for the transaction.
More recently, Strive acquired another 1,800 BTC during the past week using proceeds supported by SATA issuance.
The ability to keep SATA near its $100 par value gives Strive greater flexibility to issue new preferred shares while continuing to expand its Bitcoin treasury.
That contrasts with Strategy, which is still working to bring STRC back to par before significantly expanding issuance.
Strategy Returns to Bitcoin Buying
Strategy’s latest Bitcoin acquisition marks another important development.
The company purchased 4,603 BTC for approximately $369.7 million at an average price of $80,318 per Bitcoin.
The transaction ended a roughly 10-week period without a net Bitcoin purchase and increased Strategy’s total holdings to 845,050 BTC.
At prevailing prices cited in the report, those holdings were valued at approximately $65.9 billion.
Over the previous two months, Strategy had directed more of its available capital toward building cash reserves, meeting preferred stock obligations and repurchasing STRC.
The latest transaction changed that balance.
Of the $602.8 million Strategy raised through MSTR share sales during the reporting period, nearly $370 million went directly toward Bitcoin.
Strategy also retained significant capacity to raise additional capital. As of Aug. 30, the company still had approximately $19.09 billion worth of MSTR shares available for issuance through its at-the-market program.
Strive’s ASST Outperforms MSTR in 2026
The difference between Strategy and Strive has also been visible in their publicly traded common shares.
Strive’s ASST has gained roughly 60% since the beginning of 2026, while Strategy’s MSTR has declined approximately 15% over the same period.
Strive has continued expanding its Bitcoin holdings throughout the year.
The company reported acquiring 6,236 BTC during the second quarter and 12,237 BTC during the first six months of 2026.
It purchased another 303 BTC between July 1 and Aug. 7.
By Aug. 7, Strive had also completed 44 consecutive daily SATA dividend payments.
The company reported approximately $154.9 million in cash and cash equivalents while carrying no short-term or long-term debt as of that date.
Can Strategy Push STRC Back Above $100?
Strategy’s aggressive repurchase program has helped STRC recover substantially from its June lows, but the preferred stock remains short of the company’s key $100 target.
With $635.2 million already committed to STRC buybacks, a 12% annualized dividend and billions of dollars held across its cash accounts and reserves, Strategy has considerable resources available to support the security.
However, Strive’s SATA presents growing competition by offering a 13% annualized dividend, daily payments and a price that has remained closer to its $100 par value.
For Strategy, getting STRC consistently back to $100 could be particularly important because management has linked that milestone with future STRC issuance and additional Bitcoin purchases.
Meanwhile, Strategy’s return to Bitcoin buying suggests the company is once again attempting to balance two major priorities: supporting its preferred stock structure and continuing to expand one of the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holdings.
