SpaceX’s market introduction set off a remarkable run in its opening week of trading, as retail investors and options market participants clamored for exposure to the Elon Musk-led rockets-to-AI company. From its IPO price of $135 on June 12, the stock has advanced almost 40%, at times lifting the company’s market capitalization above $2 trillion and placing it briefly among the world’s five most valuable firms.
On day one, SpaceX opened on Nasdaq with a 19% gain from the IPO price. The offering itself raised more than $75 billion in what was reported as a record issuance, and the initial price jump carried the firm’s valuation past the $2 trillion level to make it, at one point, the sixth-largest U.S. company by market capitalization - despite the company remaining currently unprofitable.
Trading activity in SpaceX stock stood out immediately. The approximate dollar value of trades - turnover - was the highest among major U.S.-listed companies for the first several trading days. At one juncture, SpaceX’s turnover exceeded that of Nvidia by a factor greater than 3.5, underscoring unusually heavy demand and liquidity in the security during the opening week.
Retail investors were a visible force behind the demand. SpaceX allocated a record 20% of its IPO shares specifically for retail participation. That allotment translated into millions of dollars in retail purchases, making the stock one of the most heavily bought names in the week following the listing. On the debut day alone, retail net buying totaled $117.6 million, a figure described as the largest retail net buying amount recorded for any debut.
Options trading in SpaceX began on June 16 and rapidly drew strong interest. Volume in the options market climbed to a record high, with bullish positions dominating activity. The intensity of options trading further highlighted investor appetite for leveraged or hedged exposure to the newly public company.
Comparisons to Tesla’s early trading have surfaced in market commentary. SpaceX produced explosive gains across its first three trading sessions, at one point eclipsing Microsoft’s valuation to rank as the fourth most valuable firm globally. Yet the latter portion of the week brought a pullback and increased price swings - a pattern observers likened to the turbulence Tesla experienced around its own market debut in 2010.
The first week of public trading thus combined extraordinary capital raising with pronounced market enthusiasm and rapid price moves, followed by a period of consolidation and volatility. Market participants and observers will likely continue to monitor turnover, retail flows and derivatives activity closely in the near term as the stock’s early trading patterns evolve.