Strategy posts $12.6 billion Q4 loss as bitcoin slide triggers one of largest quarterly hits in corporate history

Core Insights - Strategy reported a significant fourth-quarter loss primarily due to a massive pullback in bitcoin value, marking one of the largest quarterly losses for a U.S. public company [2][3] Financial Performance - The company posted an operating loss of approximately $17.4 billion for the quarter, largely driven by unrealized losses on its bitcoin holdings [3][6] - The net loss attributable to common shareholders was $12.6 billion, a stark increase from a loss of about $671 million in the same quarter the previous year [3] - The company's stock price opened at around $120, closed near $107, and further declined to approximately $102 in after-hours trading, representing a decline of over 70% from the previous year [5] Bitcoin Market Impact - The results coincided with one of bitcoin's sharpest single-day drawdowns, with prices falling nearly 15% from approximately $73,100 to as low as $62,400 [4] - Continued weakness in bitcoin prices into early February suggested an additional $14 billion in unrealized losses, bringing total mark-to-market declines to around $31 billion since year-end [6] Bitcoin Holdings - Strategy remains the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, with 713,502 BTC reported on its balance sheet as of early February [7] - The average acquisition cost for bitcoin was around $76,000, resulting in an unrealized loss of over $9.2 billion, compared to more than $31 billion in unrealized gains just four months prior [8]