Funding stock buybacks by selling your primary reserve asset is a dangerous game, but Lite Strategy just pulled it off without using a dime of debt
Lite Strategy repurchased about 4.9 million shares for roughly $5.4 million through July 17, using a mix of Litecoin sales and covered-call premiums, not debt. The buyback retired about 13% of the shares outstanding when it began and left 31.88 million common shares outstanding, with 819,070 LTC reported on hand as of July 17. Despite lower absolute LTC holdings, the reduced share count appears to have increased LTC backing per share by about 1.66%, from roughly 0.02527 to 0.02569 LTC per share. The estimate is approximate because it relies on a reconstructed starting share count and excludes warrants. The company said its LTC NAV discount narrowed from the low-40% range to below 25%, but that move cannot be attributed solely to buybacks. Repurchases are accretive only if shares are retired faster than LTC leaves treasury; covered calls and LTC-funded buybacks also limit upside and reduce holdings.
