What happened

Shares of MicroStrategy (MSTR 15.95%) closed Tuesday's trading session 12% higher. A generally positive market day was further improved by a bullish report from an analyst better known for his short-selling strategy.

So what

The maker of business intelligence and data analysis software received a rare buy recommendation from Citron Research manager Andrew Left. The recommendation didn't involve a deep analysis of MicroStrategy's software business. Instead, Left views this company as a safe way to bet on rising bitcoin prices.

A green charting arrow points upwards in front of a list of famous cryptocurrency names.

Image source: Getty Images.

Now what

MicroStrategy purchased 38,250 bitcoin tokens in the third quarter. That $425 million investment has already ballooned into a $729 million value at current prices of $19,064 per token. Left argues that MicroStrategy would be worth $700 per share if bitcoin prices soar to $50,000 per token.

Mind you, bitcoin has a long way to go before hitting Left's target price, and we have seen cryptocurrency prices tumble before. MicroStrategy made a bold move when it moved most of its cash reserves into a big bitcoin investment. We'll just have to wait and see how that innovative idea works out in the long run.