The rocket-powered rise of Elon Musk’s SpaceX company appears to be stalling, and the company plans to sell shares next month in a deal that will price them at roughly the same level as this summer, The Post has learned.
The closely held company, whose Starlink satellite-launching unit has reportedly struggled to meet its profit targets despite rampant growth, plans to launch a public offering in December valuing SpaceX at around $150 billion, the same price assigned to it in a July public offering, according to reports.
SpaceX’s July tender, which raised $750 million in cash, according to Bloomberg, followed a similar deal in January that also had raised $750 million, but at a valuation of $137 billion.
The terms of that tender had represented a steady increase since May 2022, when SpaceX was valued at $125 billion.
The launch of a takeover bid next month appears to confirm that Musk is not considering a near-term IPO for his Starlink satellite division.
Bloomberg reported this month that Musk was discussing a possible Starlink IPO by the end of 2024.
Musk published on November 15 on his X platform that Reports that it is considering a Starlink IPO are “false.”“
Meanwhile, there are reasons why Musk might not be looking for an increase in SpaceX’s valuation.
“Investors are still unsure of the direction of Starlink,” said one of the sources with knowledge of the bidding, adding that Starlink represents the majority of SpaceX’s value.
Starlink in 2022 reported $1.4 billion in revenue and a loss for the year, according to a September Wall Street Journal article That revealed how Starlink has fallen behind investor expectations.
In 2015, SpaceX predicted that Starlink would have 20 million customers. In 2022, it had just over a million.
Musk gave a more optimistic view of finances in a November 2 post on their X platform.
“I am excited to announce that Starlink has achieved balanced cash flow! Excellent work by a great team. “Starlink is also now the most of all active satellites and will have launched the most of all satellites cumulatively from Earth next year.”
However, SpaceX is not currently planning to increase the valuation in next month’s bidding, insiders said.
By remaining conservative, SpaceX can attract investors without avoiding answering uncomfortable questions, the sources added.
“If anything, there is confusion,” the source said.
SpaceX’s new Starship rocket, designed for trips to the Moon and Mars, lifted off from Texas on November 18 and reached space before both the booster and the spacecraft were lost in a pair of explosions within minutes of the flight. proof.
Spokespeople for SpaceX and Musk did not return calls.
