10 Hottest Large-Cap Stocks So Far in 2025

4. MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR)
  • YTD Performance: 14%

MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) basically uses leverage to buy Bitcoin (BTC-USD) and once it appreciates, uses the expanded balance sheet to use even more leverage, and so on. The theory is that BTC will forever rise exponentially and many people see MSTR as a way to amplify BTC’s gains due to how leveraged the company is.

Bitcoin is up 3.7% year-to-date, so it is only natural that MSTR is also up. However, I do not think that this is something you should buy if you are looking for a long-term investment. MSTR has turned into a highly leveraged BTC derivative, and BTC itself is still quite speculative and can easily crash by over 50% in a bear market.

I would say that it is on a time bomb as I do not think that Bitcoin can deliver gains “exponentially.” Realistically, even a $5 trillion market capitalization could be possible but is borderline wishful thinking. If there is a true crypto winter in the coming years, the result would be disastrous for MSTR as BTC is its primary asset and keeps the debt-to-equity ratio relatively acceptable.

That said, if you’re looking to speculate and gamble with a small amount of your portfolio, MSTR is not a vehicle for that.