After falling below the IPO issue price, Space X will face the big test of lifting the ban
Overnight, SpaceX fell below its issue price of $135 per share for the first time. With the number of shares available for trading expected to increase significantly in early August, its share price may face greater volatility. During the U.S. stock market on Wednesday (July 15), SpaceX's stock price fell to $132.15, but rebounded to $135.27 at the close. Since its listing on June 11, the stock's highest closing price was US$201.80, and it has fallen approximately 33% since then.
Overnight, SpaceX fell below its issue price of $135 per share for the first time. With the number of shares available for trading expected to increase significantly in early August, its share price may face greater volatility. During the U.S. stock market on Wednesday (July 15), SpaceX's stock price fell to $132.15, but rebounded to $135.27 at the close. Since its listing on June 11, the stock's highest closing price was US$201.80, and it has fallen approximately 33% since then. A month ago, SpaceX's IPO set a record for the largest scale in history, but less than 5% of the company's shares were circulated to the public market. The limited circulation triggered a scramble among investors, pushing its market value to US$2.1 trillion on its first day of listing. Even though SpaceX's stock price has experienced a sharp correction, its total market value is still close to US$1.8 trillion, making it one of the most valuable listed companies in the world. In the coming months, the "lock-up period" for shares held by insiders will gradually end, and a large number of shares may enter the market. Jay Hatfield, chief executive of Infrastructure Capital Advisors, a New York investment advisory firm, said: "At the current price, it is relatively safe to participate in this stock from a trading perspective, but we will not be overweight because the lock-up period is coming." In the first batch of SpaceX's lifting of the ban, ordinary employees and some early investors will be able to sell 911.5 million shares starting from the second trading day after the company releases its first quarterly financial report. Currently, SpaceX has not announced its first financial report release date, and analysts expect it to be released in early August. Based on current stock prices, this batch of marketable shares is worth approximately $123 billion, which is higher than the current total value of tradable shares of approximately $86 billion. In addition, if SpaceX stock price remains above $175.50 for at least 5 of the 10 consecutive trading days ending on the date of the upcoming quarterly earnings report, another 455.8 million shares will be eligible for sale in advance. Overall, as the lock-up period is gradually lifted, SpaceX's tradable shares will account for 40% of the total share capital as of December 8; the remaining 60% of shares (including Musk's shareholding) will continue to be restricted and will not be lifted until mid-2027. After this correction, SpaceX's expected price-to-sales ratio is still as high as 49 times, making it a relatively high-valued stock in the U.S. stock market. By comparison, Tesla, another company owned by Elon Musk, has a price-to-sales ratio of about 15 times. However, Wall Street investment banks still have confidence in SpaceX as a whole. According to LSEG data, of the 32 analysts covering the stock, 27 gave it a "buy" rating, only 1 recommended "sell", and 4 gave it a "hold" rating. Analysts believe that SpaceX deserves a higher valuation premium due to its highly profitable Starlink service, government rocket launch business, and Musk’s long-standing strong appeal. (