Strive Asset Management Stock (ASST): Bitcoin Treasury High‑Flyer Under Pressure

Updated December 8, 2025

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always do your own research or consult a licensed adviser before making investment decisions.

Snapshot: Why ASST Is Suddenly on Everyone’s Radar

Strive, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST), the parent of Strive Asset Management, has transformed from a small‑cap curiosity into one of the most talked‑about “Bitcoin treasury” stocks on the U.S. market.

As of early trading on December 8, 2025, ASST is changing hands at roughly $0.90 per share, down nearly 8% in a single session, nearly 20% over the past week and more than 40% over the past month, according to recent analysis from Simply Wall St and live quote services. ^[1]

Despite the low share price, Strive carries an estimated market capitalization around $730–740 million, with a 52‑week range of $0.78 to $7.89 and an eye‑popping beta of 17.4, underlining extreme volatility. ^[2]

Behind that turbulence sits an aggressive strategy:

Rapid accumulation of Bitcoin (5,886 BTC as of September 30, rising to 7,525 BTC by November 10). ^[3]
A complex capital structure built around a new perpetual preferred share (ticker SATA) to “amplify” Bitcoin exposure. ^[4]
An all‑stock merger with Semler Scientific (SMLR) that, if completed, would vault Strive into the top tier of global corporate Bitcoin holders. ^[5]
A very public fight with index giant MSCI over a proposal to exclude Bitcoin‑heavy companies from major equity benchmarks. ^[6]

Here’s what’s driving Strive Asset Management stock now, and what investors are watching as 2026 approaches.

What Strive Asset Management and ASST Actually Are

Strive describes itself as “the first publicly traded asset management Bitcoin treasury company” – a hybrid of institutional asset manager and leveraged Bitcoin balance sheet. ^[7]

Key elements of the business model:

Bitcoin as “the hurdle rate.” On its corporate site, Strive says it measures performance against Bitcoin and seeks to “maximize shareholder value through a disciplined Bitcoin treasury strategy.” ^[8]
Asset management subsidiary. Strive Asset Management, LLC – a wholly owned, SEC‑registered adviser – manages more than $2 billion in ETFs and other products, including funds like the Strive U.S. Energy ETF (DRLL) and Strive 500 ETF (STRV). ^[9]
Structured finance focus. Strive positions itself as a Bitcoin‑centric structured finance platform, using perpetual preferred equity and other instruments to seek a positive spread between Bitcoin returns and funding costs. ^[10]

Corporate history adds another twist: ASST was originally the ticker for Asset Entities Inc., a social‑media‑oriented marketing firm. In 2025, Asset Entities merged with Strive Asset Management to create the current Bitcoin treasury company, keeping the ASST ticker. ^[11]

ASST Stock Today: Price, Valuation and Volatility

According to StockAnalysis and other quote services, ASST closed on December 5 at $0.9005, with shares outstanding of about 815 million and a market cap of roughly $734 million. Trailing‑twelve‑month (TTM) numbers show: ^[12]

Revenue (TTM): ~$5.5 million
Net income (TTM): approximately –$223 million
No dividend on the common stock

Simply Wall St notes that ASST now trades at a price‑to‑book ratio of about 0.9x, below both its U.S. capital markets peer group and the broader industry average near 2x, and below a ~1.3x peer subset. The platform flags ASST as undervalued on a price‑to‑book basis but stresses that the company remains unprofitable with limited operating history, so the discount largely reflects perceived execution risk. ^[13]

At the same time, Strive’s balance sheet is dominated by Bitcoin:

Digital assets at fair value: around $672.9 million as of September 30, 2025, versus total assets of ~$792.6 million – meaning Bitcoin makes up the vast majority of the asset base. ^[14]

Combine that with a beta above 17 and a sub‑$1 share price, and ASST screens as a high‑volatility, high‑leverage bet on both Bitcoin and Strive’s capital‑markets engineering. ^[15]

Q3 2025 Results: Huge Accounting Loss, Tiny Revenue

On November 14, Strive reported third‑quarter 2025 results for the period ended September 30. The quarter is messy because Strive only became the “successor” company after its reverse acquisition of Asset Entities on September 12, so the numbers are split into predecessor and successor periods. ^[16]

Headline figures for the successor period (Sept 12–30):

Revenue: $255,000 (mostly investment advisory fees)
GAAP net loss:$192.3 million, or $0.22 per diluted share
Non‑GAAP adjusted net loss:$13.0 million, or $0.01 per share, once non‑cash and non‑recurring items are stripped out ^[17]

Management highlighted that roughly 93% of the GAAP loss came from items it characterizes as non‑recurring or non‑cash:

Goodwill and intangible impairment: about $140.8 million
Net unrealized loss on digital assets: about $10.1 million
Other derivative losses: about $14.7 million
Transaction costs related to the merger and financing deals ^[18]

Meanwhile, operating expenses ballooned to nearly $19.5 million in the successor period, driven mainly by $18.7 million in compensation and benefits, reflecting the cost of building out a public‑company Bitcoin treasury platform. ^[19]

From a top‑line perspective, alternative data provider QuiverQuant estimates that Q3 2025 revenue of $255,000 is down about 74% year‑over‑year, underscoring how early‑stage and concentrated the current business is. ^[20]

Management’s 2026 guidance. Strive told investors it expects its asset management operating business to land between a “single‑digit million‑dollar loss and a single‑digit million‑dollar income” in 2026, which equates to a range of roughly –$0.01 to +$0.01 in earnings per diluted share from that segment. That guidance excludes Bitcoin mark‑to‑market swings and other non‑operating items. ^[21]

Bitcoin Hoard and the SATA Preferred: How Strive Tries to “Amplify” BTC

Strive’s identity revolves around its Bitcoin reserve and capital structure:

As of September 30, 2025, Strive held 5,886 BTC at a total cost of $683 million and fair value of ~$672.9 million. ^[22]
By November 10, 2025, after additional acquisitions, the company reported 7,525 BTC, including 1,567 coins purchased at an average of $103,315 per Bitcoin using proceeds from a new preferred stock offering. ^[23]

The SATA preferred stock

On November 10, Strive announced the closing of an oversubscribed, upsized IPO of its Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Preferred Stock (ticker: SATA): ^[24]

2,000,000 shares issued at $80 per share
Net proceeds of about $149.3 million
Initial dividend rate: variable, initially 12% on a $100 liquidation preference, paid monthly when declared
Strive expects the SATA dividends to be treated as return‑of‑capital (ROC) for tax purposes, potentially enhancing after‑tax yield for some investors
Management aims to manage issuance and dividends to keep SATA trading within a $95–$105 range over the long run

CEO Matt Cole describes SATA as a “Bitcoin amplification toggle” designed to let Strive accumulate more Bitcoin using non‑dilutive preferred equity rather than traditional debt, with the goal of accreting value to common shareholders in ASST if Bitcoin rises faster than the cost of capital. ^[25]

This “structured finance on top of Bitcoin” model is at the heart of both the bull and bear cases:

Bull view: If Bitcoin continues to appreciate over the long run, a well‑managed perpetual preferred layer could allow Strive to grow Bitcoin per share faster than a simple unlevered buy‑and‑hold strategy, potentially magnifying returns to ASST. ^[26]
Bear view: The same leverage and complexity can magnify downside, especially if Bitcoin prices fall or capital markets become less receptive to high‑yield preferred offerings. Combined with still‑tiny operating revenue, critics see a speculative balance‑sheet trade rather than a mature business. Seeking Alpha recently tagged ASST with a “Strong Sell” view, citing “extreme losses, speculative business model and lack of earnings.” ^[27]

Semler Scientific Merger: Scaling BTC and Healthcare in One Shot

On September 22, Strive announced an all‑stock merger with Semler Scientific, Inc. (Nasdaq: SMLR), a medical‑device company that has itself adopted Bitcoin as a treasury asset. ^[28]

Key details:

Strive will acquire Semler in a stock‑for‑stock deal at an implied 210% premium, with each Semler share exchanged for 21.05 ASST Class A shares (based on prices at the time of announcement).
The combined company would own more than 10,900 BTC before any additional financings, making Strive one of the world’s largest public Bitcoin holders. ^[29]
Strive plans to bring in new leadership to expand Semler’s diagnostics business into a broader preventative‑health platform, while retaining the option to monetize or spin off that business later. ^[30]

The merger is not yet closed and remains subject to shareholder approvals, regulatory review and customary conditions. The transaction has already drawn the attention of securities litigators investigating whether Semler shareholders are getting a fair deal, adding another layer of uncertainty. ^[31]

For ASST holders, the Semler deal is a double‑edged sword:

On one side, it significantly increases Bitcoin exposure per share and bolsters the story that Strive is building a diversified Bitcoin/structured‑finance/health‑tech platform. ^[32]
On the other, it introduces integration risk, potential dilution and more regulatory complexity, especially if activist shareholders or regulators push back. ^[33]

MSCI’s Bitcoin Blacklist Proposal and Strive’s High‑Profile Pushback

One of the biggest macro overhangs for ASST – and for Bitcoin‑heavy stocks in general – is MSCI’s proposal to exclude companies whose digital assets exceed 50% of total assets from key equity indexes. ^[34]

Analysts at JPMorgan and others have warned that if MSCI and peers remove large Bitcoin treasury names like MicroStrategy from major benchmarks, the move could trigger billions of dollars in forced outflows from index funds and ETFs. ^[35]

Strive has responded unusually aggressively for a mid‑cap:

On December 4, the company published a seven‑page open letter to MSCI CEO Henry Fernandez, arguing that the 50% rule is “overbroad and unworkable” and would undermine the neutrality of passive indexing. ^[36]
The letter emphasizes that many Bitcoin‑heavy companies are operating businesses in areas such as AI infrastructure and structured finance, not mere investment funds, and that excluding them would “deprive regular investors” of participation in key growth sectors. ^[37]
Strive also warns that differences between U.S. GAAP and IFRS accounting could allow foreign issuers to avoid the 50% threshold by booking digital assets at cost, meaning the rule might push Bitcoin exposure out of U.S. names into international indices rather than reduce it. ^[38]

Crypto and financial media have picked up the fight:

Forbes highlighted the letter as part of a broader backlash from Bitcoin treasury firms worried about being “shunned” from MSCI benchmarks. ^[39]
Bitcoin Magazine and Cointelegraph reported on Strive urging MSCI to “let the market decide” instead of imposing a blanket Bitcoin blacklist. ^[40]

For ASST holders, the MSCI outcome is a crucial near‑term catalyst. Inclusion or exclusion from major indexes can dramatically change who owns the stock, the cost of capital and the stability of the shareholder base.

What the Market Is Saying: Analyst Takes and Investor Flows

Because ASST is so new in its current form, traditional Wall Street coverage is still thin. StockAnalysis notes that there are no formal analyst ratings or price targets yet for the stock. ^[41]

Still, several influential voices have weighed in:

Fundamental and valuation commentary

Simply Wall St (Dec 7, 2025):
- Flags ASST’s steep short‑term drawdown – about 8% in a day, 20% over the week and more than 40% in a month – and notes that shares now trade below $1.
- Argues that the 0.9x price‑to‑book multiple screens cheap relative to peers, but only if investors are comfortable with the company’s unproven business model and heavy losses. ^[42]
Seeking Alpha – “Strive: Bitcoin Treasury – Opportunity or Trap?” (early December):
- Assigns ASST a “Strong Sell” rating, pointing to “extreme losses, speculative business model and lack of earnings” as reasons for caution. ^[43]

Alternative data: social chatter, hedge funds and insiders

QuiverQuant’s recent ASST dashboard paints a more nuanced picture: ^[44]

Bitcoin treasury strategy: X (Twitter) discussions focus heavily on Strive’s nearly 5,886–7,500 BTC holdings and the risks of tying a publicly traded balance sheet so tightly to crypto prices.
Stock volatility and potential squeeze: Traders are watching high short interest and big percentage swings, debating whether ASST could see another sudden rally if sentiment turns.
Institutional flows: At least 44 institutional investors added ASST in recent quarters, including large positions by funds such as Yorkville Advisors, Anson Funds, Citadel, Alyeska, Jane Street and Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan, with reported additions measured in tens of millions of shares each.

On the insider and whale investor side:

QuiverQuant reports that Vivek Ramaswamy, Strive’s co‑founder and high‑profile political figure, purchased 15,625 shares of ASST in the open market in the past six months. ^[45]
Crypto Briefing notes that hedge fund manager Mike Alfred disclosed buying an additional 100,000 shares at $1.05–$1.06, bringing his total stake to over 1.7 million shares and signaling willingness to “add on further weakness.” ^[46]

The result is a classic battleground setup: fundamental skeptics focused on large GAAP losses and execution risk versus Bitcoin‑aligned investors who see ASST as a leveraged, activist alternative to legacy financial institutions.

Key Upside Drivers for Strive Asset Management Stock

From a neutral perspective, the main potential positives for ASST over the next 12–24 months are:

Bitcoin bull market leverage
With thousands of BTC on the balance sheet and preferred equity funding, Strive offers high‑beta exposure to Bitcoin’s price, especially if management can consistently generate a positive spread between BTC returns and the cost of SATA and other financing. ^[47]
Growing ETF and asset‑management platform
Strive’s ETF arm manages over $2 billion in assets, with a lineup spanning U.S. energy (DRLL), large‑cap equities (STRV) and international markets. Growing management fees and potential 401(k) and direct‑indexing revenue could provide a more stable earnings base over time. ^[48]
Semler merger synergies and optionality
If the Semler deal closes and integration goes smoothly, Strive could wind up with: ^[49]
- A much larger Bitcoin hoard
- A profitable medical‑device and diagnostics business that can either be grown or monetized
- Greater scale and diversification, which could ease concerns about being “just a balance sheet trade”
Index inclusion and MSCI outcome
A favorable outcome in MSCI’s consultation – for example, MSCI deciding not to implement or significantly softening its Bitcoin exclusion – would reduce one of the most prominent overhangs on Bitcoin treasury stocks, potentially supporting valuations across the group, including ASST. ^[50]
Path toward operating breakeven
Management’s 2026 guidance for the asset‑management segment suggests a possible move toward near‑breakeven operations, at least on a non‑Bitcoin basis. If Strive can deliver that while maintaining or growing its Bitcoin stash, the equity story becomes easier for traditional investors to underwrite. ^[51]

Key Risks and Bear‑Case Arguments

At the same time, the risk profile of ASST is unusually high, even by Bitcoin‑stock standards.

Bitcoin price and volatility risk
Bitcoin mark‑to‑market losses already contributed over $10 million in unrealized losses in a partial quarter. A sustained downturn in Bitcoin could: ^[52]
- Pressure Strive’s balance sheet
- Increase the real cost of its preferred equity
- Make it harder to raise new perpetual capital on favorable terms
Complex capital structure and leverage
The SATA preferred and other financing tools are designed to amplify Bitcoin exposure. Critics argue that this introduces structural leverage and refinancing risk, even if the company avoids traditional debt maturities. Seeking Alpha’s “Strong Sell” call rests heavily on this concern. ^[53]
Execution risk on Semler and M&A strategy
The large, premium‑priced Semler merger could create value – or prove a major distraction. Risks include: ^[54]
- Integration difficulties
- Regulatory or legal challenges
- Dilution and shareholder backlash if synergies don’t materialize
Regulatory and index‑construction risk
MSCI’s proposed digital‑asset rule, and any similar policies from other index providers or regulators, could limit passive ownership of ASST, increase volatility and raise Strive’s cost of capital. ^[55]
Thin operating revenue vs. heavy costs
With quarterly revenue in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars and operating expenses in the tens of millions, Strive remains deeply dependent on capital markets and Bitcoin price appreciation. If funding windows close or BTC stagnates, the company could face prolonged losses. ^[56]
Share‑price mechanics and penny‑stock optics
Trading below $1 with extremely high beta exposes ASST to: ^[57]
- Heightened volatility and potential for manipulative trading
- Negative optics among institutional investors who avoid low‑priced, high‑vol stocks
- Potential listing‑standard issues down the line if the share price remains depressed for an extended period

What to Watch Next for ASST in 2026

For investors tracking Strive Asset Management stock as of December 8, 2025, several milestones and themes are front and center:

MSCI’s final decision on its Bitcoin‑heavy exclusion rule and any follow‑on moves from other index providers. ^[58]
Progress on the Semler merger, including shareholder votes, regulatory approvals and any legal challenges. ^[59]
Bitcoin price trajectory and how Strive uses its treasury dashboard to communicate real‑time holdings, leverage and “amplification” metrics. ^[60]
SATA trading behavior – whether the preferred stock actually trades in the targeted $95–$105 band and whether dividends remain at or near the initial 12% level. ^[61]
Evidence of operating progress: ETF AUM growth, new products (such as 401(k) offerings and direct indexing), and whether the asset‑management business approaches the near‑breakeven range management outlined for 2026. ^[62]

Bottom Line

Strive Asset Management stock (ASST) compresses several big themes into a single, volatile ticker:

The rise of Bitcoin treasuries as a corporate finance model
The clash between crypto‑heavy balance sheets and traditional index rules
The use of perpetual preferred equity and structured finance to amplify exposure
The mash‑up of asset management, healthcare and digital assets under one roof

As of December 8, 2025, the market verdict is uneasy: ASST trades below $1 with heavy losses and brutal volatility, yet carries a balance sheet stuffed with Bitcoin and a growing cohort of committed institutional and crypto‑native shareholders. ^[63]