MSTR and MSTY Show Distinct Investment Outcomes Over 12 Months

From April 2024 to April 2025, investors in Strategy (MSTR) and YieldMax MSTR Option Income Strategy ETF (MSTY) experienced different investment outcomes:

MSTR focuses on capital appreciation linked to bitcoin (BTC), holding 531,644 BTC as of April 15. The stock has increased over 2,500% since adopting a bitcoin treasury strategy in August 2020.
MSTR's current volatility is high, with an implied volatility of 87% and a 30-day historic volatility of 102%. It trades 43% below its all-time high from November 2024 and pays no dividend.
MSTY, launched in April 2024, employs a synthetic covered call strategy without directly holding MSTR shares, investing mainly in U.S. Treasury bills, cash, and short-term call options on MSTR.
From April 4, 2024, to April 9, 2025, a $1,000 investment in MSTR grew to $1,895 (+86% return); MSTY reached $1,591 (+59% return) after reinvesting $36.53 from monthly distributions.
MSTY declined 45% due to downside exposure to MSTR’s price movements and reduced net asset value from consistent high monthly distributions.
MSTY's volatility led to trading at premiums or discounts to net asset value (NAV), influenced by investor demand and MSTR's volatility.
A new bitcoin rally could improve option income and investor interest in MSTY.

Both products serve different purposes: MSTR offers high-risk growth potential tied to bitcoin, while MSTY aims for income through a derivatives-based strategy, appealing to investors willing to accept higher risk and volatility.