SpaceX shares continued a downward trajectory on Thursday, sliding past their initial public offering benchmark as the aerospace firm faced a technical setback during its latest mission attempt. The equity has now experienced five consecutive sessions of losses, marking a significant correction that has stripped approximately 40% of the value from its post-IPO high.
The sell-off intensified during Thursday’s trading, with the stock finishing the standard session at $131 before retreating further to $127 in after-hours activity. This valuation is notably lower than the $135 price set during the company’s recent market debut. Financial analysts suggest the decline stems from a transition in investor sentiment, shifting from the initial excitement of the public listing to a more rigorous evaluation of the company’s financial fundamentals. This comes shortly after the company’s integration into the Nasdaq-100 index.
The market pressure coincided with a scrubbed launch of the Starship vehicle on Thursday evening. While a 90-minute window for the heavy-lift rocket opened at 6:45 p.m. ET, the company halted operations shortly thereafter. CEO Elon Musk reported that the mission was automatically aborted when several engines failed to ignite. To address the hardware failure, the company plans to swap out two Raptor engines, with a subsequent flight attempt tentatively scheduled for early next week.
Current volatility reflects ongoing concerns regarding the reliability of the Starship platform. A previous test flight of the V3 model in May ended with the booster crashing into the Gulf of Mexico after its lower-stage engines failed to restart during the descent. While market experts note that price fluctuations are typical for newly public entities, the combination of operational delays and fiscal scrutiny continues to weigh on the company’s valuation.
