SpaceX shares slide as post-IPO rally fades, bond plans draw fresh scrutiny
SpaceX shares fell sharply this week as investors reassessed the valuation of Elon Musk's newly public space and artificial intelligence company, while plans for a major bond sale added to questions about how the group intends to finance its long-term expansion.
The stock dropped more than 6% in one session and was trading around $178.50, extending losses from previous days. Despite the decline, the shares remained more than 30% above their $135 IPO price following last week's record-breaking Nasdaq debut.
The selloff came after an extraordinary surge that briefly pushed SpaceX into the ranks of the world's five most valuable listed companies, with a market capitalization exceeding $2.5 trillion. If the latest losses are sustained, more than $150 billion would be wiped from the company's market value compared with recent levels.
Analysts said some retracement was expected after the largest initial public offering in history generated strong gains during its first days of trading.
"Given the magnitude of the IPO and the strong initial performance, some degree of profit-taking is not surprising," IPOX Schuster analyst Kat Liu said.
Retail investors were among the main drivers of the early rally. According to Vanda Research, net purchases of SpaceX shares exceeded $300 million during the first three trading sessions after the IPO. Buying activity slowed significantly later in the week.
The decline was not limited to SpaceX. Shares of several other U.S. space companies also moved lower, with Rocket Lab, Planet Labs, AST SpaceMobile and Intuitive Machines all posting losses as investor enthusiasm across the sector cooled.
The pullback has coincided with growing debate over whether SpaceX's valuation can be justified by its increasingly ambitious artificial intelligence strategy. Earlier this week, the company announced a $60 billion all-stock acquisition of Anysphere, the startup behind the AI coding assistant Cursor, in a move aimed at expanding its presence in enterprise AI software.
At the same time, SpaceX is preparing its first investment-grade bond offering, seeking to raise at least $20 billion. Banks including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley are arranging discussions with investors ahead of the planned sale, which could include maturities ranging from five to 30 years.
The debt issue would mark a notable shift for a company that remains unprofitable and is expected by S&P Global Ratings to continue burning cash through at least 2029. The proceeds are expected to refinance a bridge loan that accounts for much of SpaceX's $29.1 billion in long-term debt.
Bond investors appear to be approaching the deal differently from equity buyers. While shareholders have embraced the company's vision of combining launch services, Starlink and artificial intelligence infrastructure, creditors are focused on cash flow, debt levels and the company's path to profitability.
"Obviously it's something to get your head around and it takes a bit of a leap of faith," Ross Pamphilon, chief investment officer for fixed income at Impax Asset Management, said.
SpaceX argues that it remains financially well positioned. The company reported more than $100 billion in cash and equivalents as of June 19, strengthened by proceeds from the IPO. Last week it also secured investment-grade ratings from Moody's, Fitch and S&P, with all three agencies placing its debt comfortably above junk status.
Maintaining those ratings is a key corporate objective, according to S&P. The agency said SpaceX could scale back spending if debt levels begin to threaten its investment-grade standing, although it expects the company may need to raise additional debt and equity over time to cover cash flow deficits.
The company's strategy reflects a broader trend across the technology sector, where firms are raising unprecedented amounts of capital to finance artificial intelligence projects. According to JPMorgan, companies including Alphabet and Amazon have collectively issued more than $300 billion in AI-related debt since November.
SpaceX is positioning itself as a major participant in that race. The company has secured roughly $75 billion in contracts to provide computing capacity to Google and Anthropic, while also signing agreements with AI startup Reflection AI. Those deals are expected to become increasingly important drivers of future revenue alongside its satellite and launch businesses.
European and Ukrainian media have largely framed the recent decline as part of a wider reassessment of high-growth technology stocks rather than a SpaceX-specific problem. Commentators point to rising U.S. Treasury yields, with longer-dated government bonds again offering returns above 4.5% and in some cases approaching 5%, making riskier growth stocks less attractive to investors.
Some analysts have also highlighted concerns about growing concentration in U.S. equity markets. Recent estimates cited by European financial commentators suggest that the combined weight of the largest technology companies, boosted by IPOs such as SpaceX and OpenAI, could approach levels exceeding those seen during the dot-com era.
Against that backdrop, the retreat in SpaceX shares is being viewed by many investors as a correction following intense IPO enthusiasm rather than a verdict on the company's underlying businesses. Its core operations — launch services, Starlink and defense-related contracts — continue to attract strong interest, but markets appear increasingly reluctant to assign unlimited valuations to even the most prominent AI-linked companies as borrowing costs remain elevated.