Michael Saylor's Strategy sold 1,638 BTC for more than $104.7 million last week and used nearly half of the proceeds to buy back its own preferred stock below face value.
- The company sold its assets last week, between July 27 and Aug. 2, at an average price of around $64,000, according to a regulatory filing published on Monday.
- Bitcoin was sold at a price 15.2% below Strategy's overall average acquisition cost of around $75,400.
- Strategy allocated $52.4 million to preferred-stock dividends and the remaining $52.3 million to repurchases of STRC, its variable-rate perpetual preferred stock.
The company also sold more than 3 million MSTR common shares for roughly $290 million, directing another $29 million toward STRC purchases.
Altogether, Strategy spent over $81 million buying back 912,143 STRC shares, implying an average price of about $89. Each share has a stated amount of $100 and currently pays a 12% annual dividend.
A smaller dividend burden
Including an earlier $25 million purchase, Strategy has spent more than $106 million over two weeks buying back 1.2 million STRC shares with a combined stated amount of about $120 million.
At the current dividend rate, those shares carry approximately $14 million in annual payments. The eventual savings depend on the shares remaining out of circulation and Strategy maintaining the 12% rate.
- Strategy Chief Executive Phong Le previously called discounted STRC repurchases "an attractive allocation of capital because they can reduce future preferred dividend requirements at a discount."
- The company wants STRC to trade near $100 and says it plans to purchase more while the shares remain below that level.