Strategy (MSTR) shares climbed more than 3% in Friday trading after Barclays raised its price target on the stock, the latest sign of growing Wall Street enthusiasm for the company whose corporate treasury is built around Bitcoin.

The stock changed hands around $157, up from Thursday's close, following the bank's note to clients.

Barclays Raises Target for the Third Time This Year

Barclays analyst Nik Cremo lifted his 12-month price target on Strategy to $175 from $160 while maintaining an Overweight rating, a Buy-equivalent call. The new target implies roughly 11% upside from current trading levels.

It marks the third time Barclays has adjusted its view on Strategy this year. The bank initiated coverage with a $130 target, cut it to $125 after Strategy's second-quarter results, then raised it to $160 before the latest increase to $175.

Barclays Groups Strategy With Payments Giants

Cremo included Strategy in Barclays' third-quarter earnings preview for the payments and fintech sector, placing the company alongside Visa and Mastercard rather than treating it solely as a Bitcoin holding vehicle.

The analyst pointed to Strategy's resilience through the "crypto winter" that ran from October 2025 through the end of June this year. He also cited strong sector fundamentals and steady consumer demand heading into earnings season, and attributed September's market volatility to rising interest rates and capital rotation into AI stocks. Strategy's own third-quarter report sits on that same earnings calendar, making it the next scheduled update on the company's results.

Strategy's move also tracked a rebound in Bitcoin. BTC recovered to around $82,700 after dipping to a 24-hour low near $80,300.

Bitcoin Holdings Keep Growing

Strategy, led by Chairman Michael Saylor, now owns 848,000 BTC at an average purchase price of $75,441 per coin. Those holdings are worth approximately $72.93 billion at current Bitcoin prices. The company added another 334 BTC last week for about $28.7 million.

The firm reported a $20.91 billion gain on its Bitcoin holdings in the third quarter and ramped up purchases in September after spending the summer shoring up its preferred stock, STRC, which pays a 12% yield twice monthly.

US President Donald Trump also disclosed adding Strategy shares to his portfolio in a recent ethics filing, a disclosure that may have contributed to the stock's gains this week.

Because Strategy's business model ties its stock closely to Bitcoin's price swings, MSTR remains sensitive to shifts in crypto sentiment.

Over the past 30 days, MSTR has gained more than 18%. Over six months, the stock is up about 22%.

Wall Street's consensus rating on MSTR remains Strong Buy. All 13 ratings issued in the past three months were Buy calls, with an average price target of $236, implying roughly 52% upside from current levels. Barclays' new $175 target sits about $61 below that Street-wide average, a spread that shows how widely price targets vary even when every recent call on the stock has been a Buy.

Chart Analysis

MSTR shares have carved out a clear higher-low structure since bottoming near $100 in August, with the stock trading at $154.34 after reclaiming the $150 support zone that capped price action back in July. The $120–$125 band remains the nearest support on a pullback, while the $160–$165 area, where price stalled earlier this month, is the first resistance to clear before a retest of prior highs near $200.

RSI sits at 55.38, a neutral-to-bullish reading with room to run before overbought territory. MACD shows the blue line holding above the orange signal line with a shrinking histogram, suggesting momentum is cooling slightly after the recent run but has not turned negative.

A break below $150 could open the door back to $125, while holding above $150 keeps the near-term uptrend structure intact.

This article was originally reported by CoinCentral: Strategy (MSTR) Stock Climbs 3% as Wall Street Gets More Bullish.