Key Points
SpaceX’s first week as a public company has already raised big valuation questions.
Starlink is the key growth catalyst for SpaceX.
Starship and AI could shape whether SpaceX’s premium valuation proves sustainable.
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One week after its blockbuster IPO, Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ: SPCX) is already being valued far beyond just a rocket company. At around $165 per share (as of the morning of June 22, 2026), SpaceX had a market value of nearly $2.2 trillion.
The stock is currently around 22% above its IPO price of $135 per share and above the roughly $1.77 trillion valuation set at the time of the IPO. SpaceX initially sold 555.56 million shares at $135 each, raising $75 billion. Subsequently, the total amount raised reached $85.7 billion after underwriters bought additional shares set aside due to strong investor demand. The large amount raised showed the strong demand for SpaceX stock. But it has not answered whether the company's current business can support a valuation above $2 trillion.
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SpaceX generated $18.7 billion in revenue and had a $4.9 billion net loss in fiscal 2025. The company also incurred $20.7 billion in capital expenditures, which was higher than its fiscal 2025 revenue.
SpaceX is trading at a very rich valuation of nearly 118 times fiscal 2025 sales. That means investors are not mainly paying for the rocket business SpaceX has today. Rather, they are paying for future growth opportunities as Starlink satellite internet expands, Starship reusable rocket system lowers deployment costs, and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure becomes a much larger business.
Starlink as a growth engine
The most important reason SpaceX can support a trillion-dollar valuation is Starlink. In fiscal 2025, the Starlink-powered Connectivity segment generated $11.4 billion of revenue, or about 61% of total company sales. It also produced about $4.4 billion of operating income and is the only profitable business segment.
Starlink had about 10.3 million customers across 164 countries, territories, and markets at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2026 (ending March 31, 2026). The network was powered by about 9,600 satellites that orbit relatively close to Earth, giving SpaceX a scale advantage that few satellite competitors can match.
The next big opportunity is mobile connectivity. SpaceX says Starlink Mobile has about 30 mobile network operator partners, covers markets with roughly 1.9 billion people, and uses about 650 mobile satellites in orbit. Hence, SpaceX is trying to expand Starlink beyond home internet and turn it into a broader communications infrastructure business.
Starship and AI explain the valuation premium
Starship could prove to be a major growth catalyst in the long run. A Falcon 9 launch can carry 27 V2 Starlink satellites and add about 2,592 Gbps (gigabits per second) of bandwidth. A Starship launch could carry 60 V3 Starlink satellites and add about 61,440 Gbps of bandwidth. That is roughly 23.7 times more bandwidth per launch.
If Starship works reliably, SpaceX can add more Starlink capacity faster, lower the cost of delivering internet service, refresh its satellite network more efficiently, and support mobile, enterprise, and future space-based computing opportunities. If Starship is delayed, the valuation case weakens quickly.
SpaceX's AI segment generated $3.2 billion of revenue and a $6.4 billion operating loss in fiscal 2025. The company's $60 billion all-stock deal for Anysphere, the maker of Cursor, could strengthen SpaceX's position in AI software. Yet, AI remains a high-risk, high-reward opportunity.
Hence, investors are not paying for what SpaceX is today. They are paying a premium valuation for what must go right next.
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Manali Pradhan, CFA has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
