Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy, MSTR) bought 44,377 bitcoin in March, accounting for 94% of listed companies’ purchases, blockchain media outlet BeInCrypto reported on Tuesday. Total purchases by listed firms topped 47,000 BTC in the period, but net increases fell to about 25,000 BTC as nine companies cut their holdings.

Strategy funded its March buying with $1.18 billion raised through a STRC ATM (at-the-market) offering and $396 million via an MSTR ATM. It also had a week in which it bought 22,305 BTC in a single purchase.

Strategy’s cumulative holdings rose to 762,099 BTC. Its average purchase price was $75,699 per bitcoin. Based on the reported price of $68,698, the value of its holdings was estimated at about $52.36 billion. Excluding Strategy, about 15 listed companies increased their bitcoin holdings in March, with combined purchases of about 3,000 BTC.

Selling also stood out. Marathon Holdings cut 15,133 BTC, marking the largest sale. Exodus Movement sold 1,084 BTC, and Semler Scientific, KindlyMD, Cango, Fold, CleanSpark and London BTC Company also reduced holdings. GameStop provided 4,709 BTC as collateral, and BitcoinTreasuries reflected this as a reduction in holdings, putting GameStop’s holdings at 1 BTC and reclassifying $368.3 million as digital asset receivables. American Bitcoin (961 BTC), Strive (496 BTC) and ProCap BTC (450 BTC) moved up the rankings on buying.

The issue was that aggressive bitcoin accumulation and share price performance diverged. MSTR shares posted negative monthly returns for nine straight months. Based on monthly performance data, cumulative returns were put at -47.53% for 2025 and about -19.27% for 2026 year-to-date. The stock was down about 60% from its record high of $473.83 in November 2024 and was trading around $124.83 at the time of writing, it said.

This gap coincides with demand for listed companies’ bitcoin purchases being overly concentrated in Strategy alone. BitcoinTreasuries analysts assessed March as "one of the weakest months on record for corporate buying."