SpaceX stock surged past $220 per share in overnight trading on June 16, propelling the company’s market value to nearly $2.9 trillion and making it the world’s fourth-largest publicly traded company, surpassing both Amazon and Microsoft in market capitalization.
The stock has climbed more than 45% from its $150 opening price on Friday, June 12, the first day of trading following the company’s record $75 billion initial public offering at $135 per share. Since its IPO debut, SpaceX has gained nearly $1 trillion in value, according to NBC News.
Retail investors have been the primary driver of the rally. According to research firm Vanda, retail investors have purchased nearly as much SpaceX stock over the past two trading sessions as they bought across the entire US stock market last week. One analyst at Vanda noted: “There is only one stock retail investors care about right now.” Retail demand for the IPO exceeded $100 billion, with SpaceX allocating a record 20% of IPO shares to retail investors, according to Reuters.
On Tuesday morning, June 16, SpaceX announced it had completed the acquisition of AI coding firm Cursor (also known as Anysphere) for $60 billion. The deal, which SpaceX had outlined in April with an option to acquire or pay $10 billion for continued collaboration, adds to the company’s push into artificial intelligence alongside its core space operations.
Market analysts have expressed caution about the valuation surge. Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior market analyst at Swissquote Bank, told Reuters: “We can say with certainty that this valuation makes absolutely no sense today. People are buying SpaceX in the expectation that others will buy too and push the price higher – that’s speculation.” SpaceX reported $18.67 billion in revenue last year but posted a net loss of $4.94 billion after merging with the money-losing AI company xAI.
The momentum is expected to continue. SpaceX is set for fast-track inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 index, which will create fresh demand from passive funds and ETFs tracking the index. FTSE Russell and MSCI are also scheduled to add SpaceX to their indexes on June 26 and June 29, respectively. Additionally, SpaceX options trading is set to begin on Tuesday, which analysts expect will bring heavy and volatile early activity.
The underwriters of the IPO exercised their “greenshoe” option to purchase additional shares, increasing total IPO proceeds to $85.7 billion from the original $75 billion raised.
Sources
- NBC News — SpaceX stock performance, market cap milestone, retail investor demand analysis from Vanda research
- Reuters — Market cap comparisons, premarket trading data, valuation concerns from analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya, revenue and loss figures, Cursor acquisition announcement, index inclusion timeline
- Moneycontrol — SpaceX stock surge above $220, market value near $2.9 trillion
- X (formerly Twitter) — Real-time confirmation of $220+ trading level in overnight trading
- Reddit — Confirmation of 63% gain from IPO price of $135
