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Ukraine's Defense Ministry said Starlink and Starshield connectivity is again stable on equipment moving above 400 km/h (249 mph). Ukrainian officials said the restrictions disrupted some drone operations and weakened the country's ability to respond to Russian attacks.

Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +1.89%) shares soared after Elon Musk predicted the company could deliver annual recurring revenue (ARR) of between $500 billion and $1 trillion in 2027. If SpaceX hits those 2027 revenue estimates, the stock looks like a strong buy.

However, Musk acknowledged that meeting all his 2027 targets was not guaranteed, and that there are risks to the company's ability to reach these goals. SpaceX stock was up about 9% from its $135 IPO price before its earnings report on Tuesday.

Let's take a closer look at its results and prospects to see whether the stock still looks like a buy.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

SpaceX has big ambitions Musk's huge ARR projections stem mainly from increased compute capacity and an increased rocket-launch cadence. The company plans to bring online an additional 10 gigawatts of computing power in 2027, which is up considerably from Musk saying last quarter that the company planned to have cumulative compute power closer to 10 gigawatts than 5 gigawatts after ending 2026 with around 2 gigawatts. He added there was a small possibility it could have over 20 gigawatts of compute power online by the end of next year.

In addition to increasing compute capacity, SpaceX plans to accelerate its launch schedule in 2027. Its goal is for Starship to fly weekly in the first half of the year and possibly twice a week in the second half. This, of course, depends on the company being able to rapidly recover, refurbish, and fully reuse its Starship rocket, which it still needs to do.

Turning to its results, SpaceX's Q3 revenue surged 161% to $14.6 billion, topping the $12.7 billion analyst consensus, as compiled by LSEG. Its net income from operations came in at $2.8 billion, while net income was $4.4 billion. Meanwhile, its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) more than quadrupled to $8.8 billion.

The company's growth was led by its superintelligence (formerly AI) segment, as revenue climbed from $813 million a year ago to $7.56 billion. Segment EBITDA, meanwhile, went from a loss of $428 million to a profit of $4.95 billion. SpaceX is mainly renting out compute capacity on a short-term basis and benefiting from high prices, as it continues to see a payback on its investments in less than a year.

Starlink, the company's satellite internet service, also had a strong quarter. Revenue in its connectivity segment climbed 69%, while its operating income roughly doubled to $2.4 billion. Starlink subscribers climbed 89% year over year and were up 13% sequentially. Meanwhile, Musk said its acquisition of low-band spectrum will help it become a major mobile carrier in the U.S. some time in 2028.

Its space segment, home to its reusable rocket and launch service business, saw revenue rise 6% to $1.8 billion. However, the segment's operating income flipped from a profit of $259 million to a loss of $7 million. Importantly, the company said it was on track to recover the first and second stages at the tower this year and then refly the second stage early next year.

Looking ahead, SpaceX said it remains on track to reach $100 billion in ARR by the end of 2026. It expects to have up to 3 gigawatts of compute power online by year-end and anticipates Q4 capital expenditures of between $35 billion and $40 billion.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$147.49+$2.74 (+1.89%)

NASDAQ · As of 4:00 PM ET 10/23/26

If SpaceX can end 2027 with ARR between $500 billion and $1 trillion, the stock should move significantly higher, given that the current 2028 analyst revenue consensus is under $250 billion. Just applying a forward price-to-sales (P/S) multiple of nearly 10 times on $500 billion in 2028 revenue would give the stock a $5 trillion market cap, more than double where it trades today.

However, Musk's forecast should be taken with a grain of salt, as his track record of ambitious predictions has been pretty spotty. First, the company needs to achieve its goals with Starship, which, while it is making progress, will be no easy task.

Meanwhile, much of SpaceX's projected growth is set to come from AI infrastructure, which will require massive capex. It is also worth noting that SpaceX is benefiting from a compute-starved world, allowing it to command high prices and get quick paybacks on its investments. If supply and demand start to become more balanced due to its own aggressive infrastructure spending, its current AI economics could worsen.

Overall, SpaceX still has strong upside potential even after its post-earnings surge, but there are also risks to the story.

Can Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +1.89%) actually become the first company ever to generate $1 trillion in annual sales? Elon Musk thinks so.

SpaceX is growing fast, and it reported $14.6 billion in third-quarter revenue, a 161% year-over-year increase. However, CEO Elon Musk thinks it can grow much, much faster.

"What this implies for SpaceX's annual recurring revenue by the end of 2027 is somewhere between $500 billion and $1 trillion," he said on the Oct. 20 earnings call, referring to the growth of its newly renamed "super intelligence" business.

Let's consider what this could mean for the stock.

SpaceX is growing like wildfire
SpaceX has certainly started off its era as a publicly traded company with a bang. Revenue increased 92% year over year in the second quarter and 161% in the third quarter, and it posted its first quarterly net profit of $4.4 billion. There was momentum across its three segments: the rocket launch business, its Starlink satellite broadband, and the super intelligence (SI) unit.

SpaceX had its first revenue-generating Starship mission, and it launched three missions from three different launchpads in under 13 hours. It's expanding its deals with three new NASA International Space Station crew missions, 18 national security space launch missions, and three commercial Starfall missions, in addition to a contract for Starship to deliver a payload to the moon. Revenue increased 84% over last year, and it reported a $7 million loss.

Image source: Getty Images.

Starlink added 1.6 million subscribers in the quarter to bring its total to 13.6 million, and average revenue per user increased 5% to $69 monthly. Revenue was up 69% from last year, and its operating income doubled from $1.2 billion to $2.4 billion. Starlink is now installed on more than 3,800 aircraft, and the service has deals with United Airlines, American Airlines, and many other global carriers.

The major growth, though, is coming from SI, which increased its revenue by 830% year over year. That growth was driven by new cloud computing agreements, the company's acquisition of code-writing AI specialist Cursor, and scaling the Grok AI model's enterprise business.

"We're seeing the fastest growth of a product that I've ever seen in my life for Grok Bot," Musk said in reference to the agentic AI product. The SI segment also produced an operating profit of $431 million, up from a $1.7 billion loss last year.

Reaching for the stars
Musk's goals for SpaceX's future added some sheen to its stellar Q3 report.

"The only way that we can extend consciousness beyond Earth on a sustained basis is with a fully reusable orbital launch vehicle," he said. Starship is meant to be the first such platform, and he expects to demonstrate its full reusability as early as Starship flight 15, which is scheduled for November. The company is also building a new launch base in Louisiana to support an increasing cadence of rocket launches.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$147.49+$2.74 (+1.89%)

NASDAQ · As of 4:00 PM ET 10/23/26

A large share of SpaceX's launches are dedicated to putting Starlink satellites into orbit, and over the next three years, Musk says he expects to increase the network's bandwidth 100-fold, operating on the order of 100,000 satellites, each one providing more than 10 times the bandwidth of its current models. Five years from now, he expects demand for Starlink's bandwidth to reach 100 times current levels, driven in large part by an explosion in the use of AI agents.

That gets to his biggest goals, which are all in SI. Musk envisions that SI will be faster than all other competitors combined, and he thinks that as Grok Bot continues to scale for enterprises, essentially being able to function as "a virtual human," it will lead to massive growth. That's where his $500 billion to $1 trillion prediction comes in.

Don't discount the risks
If SpaceX reaches even $500 billion in revenue next year, the stock would certainly soar. At today's price, it trades at a lofty 63 times trailing-12-month sales. But if the stock held steady while the top line climbed that far, a year from now, it would be trading at less than 4 times sales. That would be quite a bargain.

But it's necessary to remember that Musk has often set targets and made predictions for his companies that haven't come to fruition. For example, a few years ago, he asserted Tesla was planning to increase its EV deliveries by 50% annually for several years. Last year, deliveries rose by 1%.

There are other risks, too. SpaceX wants to have between 13 and 20 gigawatts of compute power online for the SI business by the end of 2027, and it had less than 2 gigawatts operational as of the end of Q3. Hitting that goal will require heavy spending.SpaceX's capital expenditures in the third quarter came to $19.6 billion -- far exceeding the $14.6 billion in revenue it generated -- and its free cash flow was negative $10 billion.

Following the release of the Q3 report after the close on Oct. 20, SpaceX stock jumped in after-hours trading, but investors should take the company's outlook with a large grain of salt.

On Oct. 20, Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +1.89%) reported its 2026 third-quarter earnings, posting some impressive numbers.

According to CNBC-tracked analyst estimates, revenue of $14.5 billion easily topped the $12.7 billion expected, and adjusted earnings per share of $0.45 once again beat the $0.13 expected. In addition, SpaceX reported net income of $4.4 billion, a vast improvement over the prior-year net loss of more than $1 billion.

After that report, anyone who hasn't invested in SpaceX yet may be wondering whether they should have bought shares earlier and if it's too late to buy the stock. To answer that question, I'll look at SpaceX's trading history and what's ahead for the company.

Image source: Getty Images.

Get comfortable with price swings SpaceX has only traded publicly since June, but anyone who bought shares and held since then has experienced wild price swings. Shares opened to the public on June 12 at $150 and closed on June 16 at $211.39. After that, however, the stock price was trading as low as $104.83 on Aug. 3.

It then rallied to close at $171.92 on Oct. 6, but it dropped again, closing at $147.79 on Oct. 20. After the Oct. 20 earnings report, however, it opened at $160.56 on Oct. 21.

The point in sharing all that price action is that investing in SpaceX requires a lot of conviction, paired with the ability to handle rapid, steep declines. Without either, it can be easy to have a knee-jerk reaction if the price starts dropping and end up selling for a loss.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$147.49+$2.74 (+1.89%)

NASDAQ · As of 4:00 PM ET 10/23/26

It's still early Before SpaceX went public, it was viewed as a space company. That's not how it viewed itself, however, as SpaceX listed in its S-1 filing that its total addressable market (TAM) was an ambitious $28.5 trillion, with $26.5 trillion of that coming from opportunities in artificial intelligence (AI).

Its AI division is showing promise, generating $7.6 billion in revenue, up from $813 million in the prior-year period. On top of that, $7.6 billion in AI revenue means the AI division accounted for more than half of SpaceX's $14.5 billion in total revenue.

That said, there's still a long way to go to capture even more of that projected $26.5 trillion TAM. SpaceX could have a first-mover advantage in establishing a new wave of AI infrastructure through space-based data centers, but scaling will take time. It filed an application to launch 1 million satellites into space to serve as data centers, but the earliest those are expected to launch is 2028.

The final verdict on investing in SpaceX Even though the stock price may be climbing after its earnings, as shown from its price history, it's going to go through ups and downs. Also, the company is still in the early stages of pursuing the AI opportunities it believes it has.

Putting that all together, for any investor who plans to hold shares for the long haul and can handle stock price turbulence, it is absolutely not too late to buy SpaceX stock or to invest in an exchange-traded fund that holds it.

Well before the throttling this month of Ukraine's military access to Elon Musk's satellite communications system, the Biden and Trump administrations had several times asked SpaceX to turn its Starlink service on or off in various countries, according ​to six former senior US officials familiar with the matter.

During the presidency of Joe Biden, the requests included switching off the service to prevent Iranian proxy militias in Yemen and Lebanon from using Starlink to communicate, and activating the service to provide ‌internet access inside Iran and in Ukraine to support its military, said four of the former officials.

Similarly, President Donald Trump's administration asked Musk, who is CEO of SpaceX, to make the service available in Iran following US-Israeli strikes in 2025 and 2026, in hopes it would bolster internet access and communications for anti-government protesters, a former senior Trump official and a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.

All of the people spoke on condition of anonymity. The previous US requests about Starlink access are being reported here for the first time.

The recent blowup over restrictions to Ukraine's use of SpaceX satellite services has raised questions about the ties between the US government and Musk, whose company owns systems vital to the ​US military and to US allies.

The Biden-era and Trump requests to Musk show a close relationship in which US administrations rely to an unprecedented degree on a private-sector company to help implement foreign policy.

The recent limits on Ukraine, despite being a US ally, have also rattled ​officials in Europe, some of whom argue that Europe must develop its own military satellite communications capabilities because no viable short-term alternative currently exists.

STARSHIELD RESTRICTIONS HOBBLE UKRAINE MILITARY
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week that his country's access ⁠to Starshield, the military version of the Starlink system, had been intentionally limited, interfering with the performance of the country’s military drones. He also said the speeds were reduced for Starlink, which Ukraine uses for some military activities including defense against Russian missile attacks.

Reuters has reported that the order to throttle Starshield ​came from inside the White House. The Trump administration has acknowledged the slowdown but has not said whether it gave the order.

The White House, contacted for comment, referred Reuters to Trump's remarks on Friday, when he said he had not spoken with Musk about Starlink access issues for Ukraine and that "if there ​is a problem, I'll get it straightened out."

Halyna Yusypiuk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian embassy in Washington, said Ukraine's priority is "to have the service restored to normal speed as soon as possible, as the lives of our people depend on it."

SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment, although Musk said in a social media post earlier this week: “Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately (by the president of the United States).”

Democratic US Representative Jason Crow called on Friday for clarity about the recent changes to Ukraine's satellite service, saying there are risks to the US dependence on SpaceX.

"Unelected billionaires and private ​corporations should not decide what is in the best interest of America's national security," Crow said.

For Ukraine, the Starlink internet service has become the lifeblood of frontline communication between units, who say there is currently no rival to the capabilities of SpaceX's products.

Starshield receivers, largely impervious to radio jamming, are used ​as onboard guidance systems and to provide links to a remote pilot for Ukrainian drones, including deep behind Russian lines inside Ukraine.

MUSK'S INFLUENCE RAISES UNCERTAINTY
Musk's role as the strong-willed CEO of a company with outsized influence over US national security has at times raised questions over who is making decisions about SpaceX's satellite services.

The SpaceX CEO ‌is "supposed to be a ⁠business executive, with government contracts, and he's essentially making huge foreign policy decisions," said Armand Musey, president of Summit Ridge Group, a satellite industry consultancy.

"He's sufficiently ambiguous of a person that you don't know if his decisions are sort of his personal quirks, or it's because there's an influence elsewhere that's impacting him," Musey said.

In previous years, Musk has moved to limit Ukraine’s access to Starlink. In 2022, according to Reuters reporting, Musk ordered SpaceX personnel to cut Starlink coverage in areas Ukraine was trying to retake, a move that surprised White House officials.

Musk has said publicly that he refused a 2022 Ukrainian request to activate his satellite network in Crimea's port city of Sevastopol to aid an attack on Russia's fleet there, saying he feared complicity in a major act of war.

The Biden administration at times relied on Musk to help implement policy, five of the former officials said.

Biden officials coordinated with SpaceX to thwart US adversaries by ​cutting the service, and to help allies by expanding Starlink’s availability, they said.

They ​added that discussions between the government and SpaceX, which usually included ⁠Pentagon and White House officials, often focused on preventing groups such as the Iranian-linked Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon from using Starlink terminals.

Biden officials several times shared intelligence with SpaceX that indicated that the Houthis and Hezbollah were using diverted Starlink terminals — hardware that made its way to the militants through intermediaries.

In October 2023, during fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, intelligence officials told the White House that individuals linked to Hezbollah could ​have gained access to Starlink terminals. Officials had similar concerns about the Houthis in Yemen in 2024 during a US air campaign against the Iran-linked group, five of the officials said.

In both cases, the administration contacted ​SpaceX and asked it to identify the ⁠terminals and shut them off. At least some of the terminals were deactivated, said two of the officials.

In a 2024 submission to the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security, SpaceX said it works closely with US government agencies to secure export authorizations where required and to safeguard technology in support of US national security objectives and foreign policy goals.

Soon after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Biden officials pushed SpaceX to expand Starlink use for the Ukrainian military, said two of the former officials.

In a separate instance, the Biden administration asked SpaceX to turn on Starlink in Iran during a protest movement launched in September 2022 after the ⁠death of Mahsa Amini, ​an Iranian arrested for not wearing her hijab properly, according to one of the former officials.

Starlink terminals were moved into the country with the help of the administration, said the ​official, who declined to say how many were transferred.

The Trump administration took a similar step earlier this year and discussed with Musk and SpaceX getting Starlink terminals into Iran and activated following US-Israeli strikes in the country in June 2025 and again in February 2026, a former senior Trump official and a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Neither the Trump administration nor SpaceX ​has publicly confirmed that those terminals were turned on. The Wall Street Journal reported in February that the US government had sent thousands of Starlink terminals into Iran.

Iran's delegation to the UN did not respond to a request for comment.

Future Ventures co-founder and SpaceX board member Steve Jurvetson and Xona co-founder Brian Manning discuss NASA's plans to return to the moon in 2028 on 'The Claman Countdown.' #fox #media #breakingnews #us #usa #new #news #breaking #foxbusiness #theclamancountdown #nasa #spacex #space #moon #lunar #moonlanding #astronauts #spaceexploration #science #technology #innovation #artemis #elonmusk #musk #spaceflight #rocket #rockets #satellite #future #universe #cosmos #engineering #spacetechnology #privatesector #american #mission #2028

Earlier this week, Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +1.89%), better known as SpaceX, surprised Wall Street with an impressive third-quarter earnings report. Elon Musk's space exploration and artificial intelligence (AI) company generated $14.6 billion in revenue and reported $4.4 billion in net income, reversing a loss of $1.1 billion in the year-ago quarter.

At first glance, these results suggest SpaceX reached an important profitability milestone. But a finer detail buried in the company's 10-Q deserves closer attention. SpaceX recognized a $561 million gain associated with its equity investment in The Boring Company, another business founded by Musk.

Although this is legitimate under accounting rules, this gain did not generate any cash for SpaceX. Let's explore what exactly happened, why it matters, and what investors should watch as SpaceX accelerates its infrastructure spending.

Image source: Getty Images.

How SpaceX recorded a profit without receiving any cash To understand how this accounting adjustment works, imagine you bought a baseball card for $100. Several months or years later, someone else purchases the same card for $200. Based on that transaction, you determine that your card is now worth $200. You're technically $100 "wealthier" on paper, but you haven't actually sold your card or received another $100 in your bank account.

This is essentially what happened with SpaceX. The company owns a stake in The Boring Company, Musk's tunneling and transportation business. In September, The Boring Company raised $3 billion in Series D financing. Investors purchased shares at a $20 billion valuation, giving SpaceX fresh insight into the value of its existing investment.

Under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), SpaceX can measure this investment using its fair value. As a result, the company recognized a $561 million unrealized investment gain. An unrealized gain simply means an asset has increased in value, but its owner hasn't sold it.

SpaceX recorded this increase under Other income, allowing the gain to flow through its income statement and contribute to reported profitability. There's nothing inherently suspicious about this accounting treatment. However, investors should understand that the gain doesn't come from the company's operations in launching rockets, selling Starlink subscriptions, or providing AI computing services.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$147.49+$2.74 (+1.89%)

NASDAQ · As of 4:00 PM ET 10/23/26

SpaceX's profitability can be measured a different way As referenced, SpaceX reported $4.4 billion in net income during the third quarter. By excluding the $561 million Boring Company gain, the company's normalized net income would be closer to $3.8 billion. However, this is technically an imperfect way to measure profitability because it doesn't account for differences in tax effects when recognizing investment gains versus not recognizing them.

I think a better way to judge SpaceX is by looking at operating income. Operating income measures the money a company earns from its core business segments after operating expenses, but before interest, taxes, and other financial items.

The table illustrates SpaceX's operating income by business unit compared to last year.

Business SegmentQ3 2026 Operating IncomeQ3 2025 Operating IncomeSpace($7) million$259 millionConnectivity (Starlink)$2.4 billion$1.2 billionSuper Intelligence (SI)$431 million($1.7) billionTotal$2.8 billion($273) million Data source: Investor relations.

These figures illustrate how SpaceX's operating performance is genuinely improving. However, there's another wrinkle investors need to understand: Accounting profits are not the same as free cash flow.

SpaceX is spending unprecedented sums expanding its infrastructure. During the third quarter alone, the company spent $19.6 billion in capital expenditures (capex), including $16.4 billion attributable to its AI business. For perspective, that investment was larger than SpaceX's entire reported revenue for the quarter.

Moreover, the company spent $48.1 billion in capex through the first nine months of the year, compared with $13.1 billion in operating cash flow. Simple math shows a $35 billion deficit between cash generation and infrastructure spending.

Of course, this doesn't mean SpaceX is running out of money. The company's historic IPO and debt financing provide enough liquidity to fund its various build-outs for the time being. The main takeaway here is that the company is spending considerably more on infrastructure than its operations currently generate in cash.

Is SpaceX's noncash gain a red flag? At the end of the day, SpaceX's accelerating revenue and improving operating margins are encouraging. My thought is that the $561 million noncash gain from The Boring Company is a normal accounting adjustment rather than evidence of misleading financial reporting.

With that said, investors should look beyond the company's headline profit going forward and focus more on operating income, capex, and free cash flow. Those figures will ultimately tell us whether SpaceX is building a financially sustainable industrial conglomerate or simply spending too much to pursue its ambitions.

Bloomberg reported Thursday that SpaceX is in talks to access at least 80,000 US cell sites for Starlink Mobile, roughly half the purpose-built towers in the country. Crown Castle rose almost 10% after hours while AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile all fell.

A single SpaceX share sounds simple, but the tax bill that follows a child for decades depends entirely on how Musk routes the gift, and the IRS rules for each path point in very different directions.

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On October 19, 2026, Elon Musk posted a promise on X about his SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX | SPCX Price Prediction) stock: “Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many.” He hasn’t said how the shares would reach the kids.

That missing detail drives almost every tax outcome. SpaceX closed at $144.75 a share on October 22, 2026. Yahoo Finance, citing Census Bureau data, counts roughly 73 million children under 18 in the U.S. One share each would come to about $10.6 billion at that price. Below is how the rules could land on Musk, families and the kids under each delivery path.

One Share Sits Far Below the 2026 Gift Tax Exclusion
Federal gift tax starts with the annual exclusion in 26 U.S.C. § 2503(b)(1). The statute’s base-year figure is $10,000 per recipient. With inflation adjustments, the 2026 amount is $19,000. Each recipient gets a separate exclusion.

However, the exclusion covers only gifts of a present interest, meaning something the recipient can use right away. A $144.75 share handed over directly, usually into a custodial UTMA or UGMA account that a parent runs, would sit well under the $19,000 line. A gift that misses the exclusion counts against the donor’s lifetime exemption, which is $15,000,000 for 2026.

Trump Accounts Lock the Money Until Age 18
Yahoo Finance, citing a Bloomberg report, said Trump Accounts could be the vehicle . Under § 530A(d)(1), the account can’t pay out anything before the first day of the calendar year the child turns 18.

Money that’s locked up looks like a future interest. Congress settled that question for 529 college plans by declaring contributions present-interest gifts in § 529(c)(2)(A)(i). Section 530A has no matching sentence. To fill the gap, the IRS issued Rev. Proc. 2026-25, a safe harbor that treats Trump Account contributions as present-interest gifts eligible for the annual exclusion. It covers only individual donors who meet its scope requirements . Nobody knows yet whether a gift on Musk’s scale would qualify.

Investment rules also apply: before 18, the account may hold only low-cost mutual funds or ETFs that track a broad U.S. stock index (§ 530A(b)(3)). A single stock doesn’t qualify, so a SpaceX share would apparently have to be converted before it went in.

Two Ways to Route the Shares, Two Rulebooks
Path one: Musk gives personally. Contributions from individuals count toward the $5,000 annual limit per child under § 530A(c)(2)(A). That cap applies to everyone’s contributions combined, so his share would use up part of what parents and grandparents can add that year.

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Path two: a charity. A “general funding contribution” doesn’t count toward the cap. Under § 530A(f)(2), only governments, Indian tribal governments and 501(c)(3) organizations can make one, and it has to go to a defined group of children, such as every account holder under 18. Musk could give shares to a qualifying charity that funds the accounts, a path that also tends to be the most tax-efficient way to move appreciated stock (we walked through donating appreciated shares and other tax-smart giving moves in a free guide here).

In a first, SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell has committed more than $320 million in SpaceX stock to fund Trump Accounts for more than 2 million children, per Yahoo Finance.

Kids Inherit Musk’s Cost Basis, and Possibly Its Tax Bill
The child’s tax bill comes later, when the share is sold or the money is withdrawn. Under § 1015(a), which covers gifts made after December 31, 1920, the person who receives a gift takes over the donor’s cost basis, meaning what the donor originally paid. Musk’s basis isn’t public. If it’s low, almost the entire sale price could be taxable gain. Inherited shares work differently: the basis generally steps up to market value at death. Gifted shares get no such steps up.

If a child sells shares from a custodial account, the gain can fall under the kiddie tax, reported on Form 8615, which can tax a child’s investment income at the parents’ rate.

Inside a Trump Account, the math changes again. Section 530A(d)(2)(A) says qualified general contributions don’t count as the child’s investment in the account. That means money funded by a charity has no tax-free portion, and every dollar is taxed as ordinary income when it comes out, with no tax break on the back end. A personal contribution from Musk is nondeductible, so it would likely count as after-tax money, leaving only the growth taxable.

What Grandparents Should Check Once Musk Reveals the Mechanics

Which account. Custodial account or Trump Account sets the basis rules, the access age and the tax rate.
The $5,000 limit. If Musk gives personally, plan your own contributions around his.
Your exclusion. Your $19,000 per grandchild for 2026 is separate from his.
Records. Keep any statement showing the gift date and the donor’s basis. The child will need both when the share is sold.

Before you change your own giving plans around the shares, run the numbers with a CPA.

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Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +1.70%) is perhaps the most ambitious company in history. The rocket launch company that just went public in the largest initial public offering (IPO) ever, raising $85.7 billion in the process, is also trying to tackle artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, satellite internet, and even semiconductor fabrication.

SpaceX just reported second-quarter earnings, burning $9.9 billion in free cash flow due to its massive capital spending plans. Management has called for even more aggressive spending in the quarters ahead. Here's what that means for SpaceX's AI business, how long its IPO proceeds will last before it needs to raise more funds, and whether the stock is a buy today.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$147.21+$2.46 (+1.70%)

NASDAQ · As of 2:19 PM ET 10/23/26

Fast growth, faster capital spending To take advantage of the opportunity afforded by the AI spending boom, SpaceX has built a data center business, along with its own AI software tools, such as its recent acquisition, Cursor, as well as Grok Bot. It has smartly brought on data centers in a supply crunch, leading big customers like Alphabet and Anthropic to flock to it for contracts.

Last quarter, ending in September, SpaceX's AI infrastructure revenue was $7 billion, up from a measly $359 million a year prior, driven by large contracts signed in 2026. However, to achieve this strong revenue growth, SpaceX is incurring heavy capital expenditures, resulting in a negative free cash flow of $9.9 billion for the period.

Total capital expenditures of $19.5 billion in Q3 are expected to double sequentially to around $40 billion, putting SpaceX's capital spending in the same ballpark as hyperscalers like Microsoft. It is going from a standing start at an extremely aggressive pace to try and become a major player in AI infrastructure, and so far, it is paying off with rapid revenue growth.

SpaceX will eventually need to generate positive free cash flow, as the funds from the IPO will run out within two years at the current burn rate. Management should be able to raise funds if this rapid growth continues, but it is always better to bet on a rock-solid business model that generates positive free cash flow than to hope a company can keep raising capital.

Image source: Getty Images.

A complicated story that needs to be woven together SpaceX's business plan is ambitious and will be difficult to execute. That's not to say it hasn't pulled off miracles before, but this time there is a lot on its plate to achieve positive free cash flow within the next few years.

One, the Starship  ayloads to orbit. When it does, SpaceX plans to launch a bunch of new advanced satellites for its Starlink internet service, along with orbital data centers for its AI infrastructure business. It is also working on its own semiconductor manufacturing hub in conjunction with Tesla, another technology giant owned by Elon Musk, with which SpaceX is considering a merger.

All this has Elon Musk betting that SpaceX will achieve annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $500 billion to $1 trillion by the end of 2027, which is barely a year from now. Taking its overall quarterly revenue in Q3, its ARR was $58.3 billion. That means around a 10x increase in its quarterly revenue by Q4 of next year, a goal that is likely not achievable in such a short time frame.

SPCX Free Cash Flow (Quarterly) data by YCharts.

Should you buy SpaceX despite its cash burn? Investors are rewarding SpaceX for burning cash to accelerate revenue growth as it invests in AI data centers. It now has a market cap of $2.15 trillion.

Unless you believe Musk's claims that ARR will reach $500 billion or more by this time next year, SpaceX stock is likely overvalued and very risky to buy, given its heavy cash burn. It currently trades at a price-to-sales ratio (P/S) of 69, which is one of the most expensive sales ratios in the stock market today.

Sure, it is one of the fastest-growing businesses, but who's to say when the AI spending boom will slow down? That would be detrimental to SpaceX's share price.

For all these reasons, it is probably best to avoid buying SpaceX stock right now. 

Space Exploration Technologies Corp., aka SpaceX, is well positioned for massive growth, targeting $100B ARR and up to 3 GW compute capacity by year-end, finishing very strongly for 2026. SPCX's compute rental business and Starlink's 13.6M subscribers underpin robust near-term economics and fund aggressive terrestrial and AI expansion. Management is securing $40B in debt financing to support a multi-year AI infrastructure buildout and potentially hitting 23 GW in power capacity by FY2027.

SpaceX is reportedly in talks to secure a minimum of 80,000 cell sites across the US, a move that would solidify the rocket and satellite giant's path toward building a fourth nationwide wireless carrier. Ruhell Amin reports on Bloomberg Television.

A group of Silicon Valley U.S. House Democrats on Friday demanded the White House investigate recent interruptions of Elon Musk's Starlink internet service in Ukraine in a letter to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.

The letter, shared exclusively with CNBC and led by California Democratic Reps. Sam Liccardo, Ro Khanna and Jimmy Panetta, comes after Starshield, the military-grade version of SpaceX's Starlink, was restricted in Ukraine for a period of time, limiting the besieged country's military capabilities.

Ukrainian officials told CNN on Friday that restrictions remained in place, despite President Donald Trump's claim Thursday that Musk had restored access. The officials said the restrictions were disrupting high-speed military drones, hampering Ukraine's ability to intercept Russian attacks and conduct operations along the front line.

The lawmakers in their letter to Wiles demanded an "immediate, government-wide investigation into the decision to restrict SpaceX's Starshield satellite-based intelligence and military support services in Ukraine." The letter indicates Democrats will make investigating the Starlink interruption a top priority if they win the House in the Nov. 3 midterm election.

"We will ensure that the 120th Congress will closely scrutinize federal funding awarded to Mr. Musk's businesses, including whether these companies meet their contractual obligations, and whether adequate safeguards exist against political interference, arbitrary service restrictions, and misuse of federal resources," the lawmakers wrote.

SpaceX and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Democrats are widely expected to investigate private businesses that contract with the government if they win control of Congress, which would grant them subpoena power at the committee level.

At the core of the lawmakers' questions is who ordered the throttling of Ukrainian Starshield and whether the direction came from President Donald Trump or Musk, a private citizen.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Musk ordered the restrictions, and the news outlet subsequently reported they were lifted after a phone call between Trump and Musk. Ukrainian forces rely on Starshield to conduct military operations amid a Russian invasion that began over four years ago. Trump has repeatedly denied ordering the disruption of Starlink, despite Musk's public assertions that the order would have come from the White House.

"Despite the resulting loss of human life, and the serious national security implications, neither the Administration nor SpaceX has provided a clear and consistent explanation of responsibility," the lawmakers wrote in the letter. "Either a private contractor independently made life-and-death national security decisions, or President Trump directed the restriction of critical military communications supporting a U.S. ally."

The lawmakers asked Wiles who was behind the decision to restrict Starshield service and to identify any individuals "who authorized, directed, approved, or [were] consulted about the restrictions." The lawmakers also asked how the restrictions were implemented, whether they violated federal contracts and whether similar vulnerabilities exist elsewhere.

"As Silicon Valley's elected members in Congress, we represent hundreds of innovation economy employers and workers whose livelihoods depend on the credibility of American technology abroad," the lawmakers wrote. "Politically motivated service interruptions or erratic throttling will undermine reputations developed through decades of work that Americans have led to support our allies and customers throughout the world."

Space Exploration Technologies Corp‘s (NASDAQ:SPCX) third-quarter results show Starlink had 13.6 million consumer subscribers as of Sept. 30. That’s up from 7.2 million a year earlier — an increase of nearly 89%.

But average monthly revenue per consumer subscriber, or ARPU, fell to $69 from $83, down roughly 17%.

That divergence shows up in revenue, too. Consumer revenue climbed 57% year over year to $3.12 billion in the third quarter, trailing subscriber growth by a wide margin.

The numbers do not necessarily point to weakening demand or pricing power. ARPU can change as a service expands into new markets, attracts different types of customers, or changes its pricing mix. SpaceX said subscriber growth in the quarter was driven by developed markets, while management attributed the latest sequential ARPU improvement to favorable customer-mix dynamics.

Still, the gap matters. Starlink is adding customers faster than it is growing consumer revenue, making its subscriber base’s composition and spending patterns increasingly important to its financial performance.

Read Next

The Rebound Investors Should WatchStarlink’s monthly consumer ARPU increased 5% from $66 in the second quarter to $69 in the third.

Consumer revenue also rose 26% sequentially, while the subscriber base added 1.6 million users during the quarter. That combination suggests the latest quarter was stronger than the year-over-year ARPU comparison alone might imply.

Meanwhile, Starlink’s broader connectivity business is benefiting from customers beyond households. Enterprise and government revenue increased 91% year over year to $2.13 billion, outpacing consumer revenue growth. SpaceX also reported that it installed Starlink on more than 3,800 aircraft by the end of September.

These higher-growth business lines could become increasingly important as SpaceX expands connectivity services and prepares to use additional spectrum for Starlink Mobile. The company agreed in October to acquire a portfolio of 800 MHz spectrum licenses, with the transaction expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory and other customary conditions.

Growth Is Only Half the StoryFor investors, the question is not whether Starlink can attract more users. Its latest results suggest it can. The bigger test is whether revenue per customer can stabilize as the network expands and new services reach more markets.

The sequential ARPU recovery is encouraging, but one quarter does not establish a lasting trend.

Investors should watch whether future subscriber additions translate into stronger consumer revenue growth—and whether Starlink can sustain expanding profitability while continuing to invest in capacity.

Read Next

Image via Shutterstock

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Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its position in shares of SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) by 427.4% in the undefined quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,419 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,202 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel's holdings

In the last 30 days, SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) stock saw significant volatility and two strong rallies, with one taking it above $170 for the first time since June, but by press time in the October 23 pre-market, its destination proved unexpectedly close to the start of the journey.

Specifically, if an investor put $1,000 in SPCX shares close to the evening bell on September 23, they would have purchased the equity at roughly $148.36. On October 22, SpaceX stock closed at $144.75 and, the following morning, it was changing hands at $149.43 after a 3.23% extended-session rally.

Considering the price moves, the original $1,000 investment would have become $975.70 – for an unrealized loss of $24.30 – by Thursday evening, and it would have turned into $1,007.21 in the Friday pre-market – a $7.21 unrealized gain.

Notably, and despite the latest regular-session drop – SPCX crashed 9.14% on October 22 – the equity remains above its initial public offering (IPO) price of $135, though it is, nonetheless, below both the June 12 morning price of $150 and the evening price of $160.95.

Interestingly, it is roughly in the middle of the range from the $225.64 all-time high (ATH) and the $104.83 all-time low, though, admittedly, closer to the lower bound, being $76.21 – 33.78% – away from the former, and $44.60 – 42.55% – away from the latter.

What’s next for SpaceX stock?
Meanwhile, the recent volatility has done little to dampen Wall Street’s enthusiasm for Elon Musk’s newer public company, as it has, throughout the last 30 days, recorded several important achievements and technological milestones. 

For example, the recent Starship Flight 14 proved a remarkable success as the SpaceX rocket launch managed orbital insertion and deployed Starlink satellites for the first time ever.

Additionally, the company managed to, in collaboration with Musk’s other public company, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), enable the new Roadster to achieve a type of flight, as dramatically showcased at the October 15 event.

The third quarter (Q3) also featured strong financial results, with SpaceX’s revenue soaring from $7.81 billion in Q2 to $14.58 billion, and earnings-per-share (EPS) rising from a $0.09 loss to a $0.45 gain.

Furthermore, the firm might soon grow even larger as a merger between Musk’s car and rocket, telecommunications, artificial intelligence (AI), and social media company appears highly likely, with the prominent analyst Dan Ives putting the odds of it taking place at 80% or higher.

We believe there is an 80%-90% chance that Tesla and SpaceX merge by the end of 2027 for a number of strategic AI and data-driven reasons and this is the right move for Musk. Board Committees on both Tesla and SpaceX analyzing deal merits and price. 🏆🚀🐂

— Dan Ives (@DivesTech) October 21, 2026

Lastly, the developments also led to multiple new and increasingly bullish Wall Street 12-month price targets, with JPMorgan’s (NYSE: JPM) forecast revision from $240 to $500 perhaps being the most illustrative of the institutional optimism.

Featured image via Shutterstock

SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) received a massive upgrade from Phillip Securities on October 23, when analyst Glenn Thum upgraded the space company from “Sell” to “Buy” and increased his SpaceX stock price target from $75 to $250.

The new price forecast, which represents a 233% increase from the previous one, assumes that compute demand is running ahead of supply. The analyst also noted that SpaceX’s contracts are renewing at higher prices per watt, which should be another catalyst.

Thum also raised his fiscal 2026 revenue estimate by 56% to $45.1 billion and lifted his fiscal 2027 forecast by 201% to $132 billion. In addition, he expects the company’s new capacity to pay back in less than a year.

Following the upgrade, SPCX shares rose 2.13% in pre-market trading, where they sat at around $147.83 at the time of writing.

SPCX share price one-day chart. Source: Google Finance
SpaceX stock forecast tripled at Phillip Securities; Other analysts bullish too
The previous $75 target was assigned in August, when Phillip Securities maintained a “Sell” due to revenue sustainability issues despite strong second-quarter 2026 results. Specifically, the firm highlighted a $542 million operating loss and capital expenditure of 2.4 times revenue. 

It all changed this week, however, when SpaceX shares began climbing in the wake of extraordinary third-quarter results. Indeed, Elon Musk’s newly publicly traded company disclosed $14.58 billion instead of the anticipated $12.72 billion, seeing its sales double from $7.81 billion in Q2.

Naturally, Phillip Securities was not the only analyst firm to hike its SpaceX share price target. JPMorgan, for instance, more than doubled its own forecast from $240 to $500. What’s more, the bank doubled its 2027 revenue prediction to $254 billion.

Similarly, Bank of America (BofA) Securities raised its own price target on SpaceX from $235 to $275, maintaining a “Buy” rating on the stock. The firm likewise cited third quarter results and updated guidance for 2027. 

Wall Street thinks SpaceX stock will rally 70% next year
Philip Securities’ new $250 SPCX price target matches the average forecast given by Wall Street over the past three months, and it implies the space exploration company can rally 72% over the next 12 months, citing TipRanks calculations.

SPCX stock 12-month forecast. Source: TipRanks
The figure is the result of 35 analyst calls, of which 29 were definitive “Buys,” versus just five “Holds” and one “Sell.” As for the price predictions, the highest one currently sits at $500, while the lowest one is at $140.

Featured image via Shutterstock

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SpaceX is in talks with cellular infrastructure companies to secure access to at least ​80,000 sites across the United States, Bloomberg ‌News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The agreements would potentially solidify the company's path toward ​building a fourth nationwide wireless carrier.

SpaceX, ​which is buying nationwide low-band spectrum, is in talks ⁠with mobile infrastructure provider Crown Castle (CCI.N), according ​to the report

TD Cowen estimated a nationwide terrestrial ​network would cost more than $80 billion, requiring many years and billions in additional spending

The 80,000 sites would equal half ​the 158,500 purpose-built cell towers operational in the ​US last year, according to the Wireless Infrastructure Association

Crown Castle ‌operates ⁠about 40,000 US cell towers, while American Tower (AMT.N) has about 42,000 US sites; privately held Vertical Bridge owns around 18,000

Crown Castle CEO Christian ​Hillabrant said ​on Wednesday ⁠it was talking to "all parties", when asked about potential leases with SpaceX ​and Amazon (AMZN.O), but declined to discuss ​specific ⁠customers

Crown Castle, American Tower, Vertical Bridge and SpaceX did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for ⁠comment

Shares of ​wireless carriers AT&T (T.N), Verizon (VZ.N) ​and T-Mobile (TMUS.O) fell between 4.2% and 5% in extended trading

SpaceX (SPCX -9.14%) posted third-quarter results on Oct. 20 that showed revenue up 161% year over year to $14.6 billion. But the bigger story was the guidance. Management expects quarterly revenue to more than double by early next year.

"We now see total company revenues in the range of $33 billion to $37 billion for Q1 of 2027," chief financial officer Bret Johnsen said on the company's third-quarter earnings call.

Shares closed at about $148 on Oct. 20, before the report, then jumped about 8% in after-hours trading to roughly $160. Even after that jump, the stock is about 24% below the record $211.39 it closed at in June.

I've thought SpaceX stock was too expensive for a while, and this guidance makes that a much closer call.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

SpaceX's growth is picking upShowing how fast the business is scaling, SpaceX's revenue was $4.7 billion in the first quarter of 2026, $7.8 billion in the second quarter, and $14.6 billion in the third. Sequential growth rose from 66% to 87% over that span.

Most of the gain came from the super intelligence segment (SpaceX's artificial intelligence unit, which rents computing capacity to other companies and sells its own models and software). Its revenue almost tripled from the second quarter's $2.6 billion to $7.6 billion, including $608 million from Cursor, the coding-software company SpaceX bought in August. This made the segment over half of the company's sales.

Even without Cursor, total revenue still grew around 79% from the second quarter.

The profit lines turned, too. Operating income was $2.8 billion, up from a $273 million loss a year ago and a $143 million loss in the second quarter. And net income came in at $4.4 billion, versus a $1.1 billion loss in the year-ago quarter, but around $1 billion of other income and a $390 million tax benefit helped.

What does the guidance do to the valuation?Before the report, SpaceX stock traded at over 80 times its sales in the 12 months through June (about $23 billion).

The third quarter alone changed that a lot. Swapping a $5.6 billion quarter in 2025 for a $14.6 billion one pushes trailing-12-month revenue to about $32 billion. Even at around $160 a share, which values SpaceX at about $2.2 trillion, the stock is priced at about 68 times sales.

If SpaceX reaches its first-quarter range, that revenue would come to $132 billion to $148 billion on an annualized basis. Measured against that run rate, the stock costs about 15 to 16 times sales -- arguably a fair sales multiple for a business growing so fast.

The guidance doesn't look like a stretch on its own terms, either. Hitting $33 billion or more two quarters after a $14.6 billion quarter takes around 50% to 60% sequential growth a quarter, which is slower than the 87% pace SpaceX just posted.

The spending comes firstManagement sees fourth-quarter capital spending of $35 billion to $40 billion, almost twice the third quarter's $19.6 billion.

SpaceX's cash and marketable securities dropped to around $90 billion on Sept. 30 from $100 billion on June 30. And the fourth-quarter spending plan alone is around 40% to 45% of that.

SPCX Space Exploration Technologies$144.75-$14.56 (-9.14%)

NASDAQ · As of 4:00 PM ET 10/22/26

Of course, the run rate also depends on what SpaceX can charge for compute. CEO Elon Musk said on the call that SpaceX rents its compute at around spot-market prices instead of signing long-term deals, and that its short-term contracts are renewing at higher prices. But revenue priced near spot rates might drop about as fast as it climbed if compute gets less scarce.

Also, SpaceX expects only around $42 billion of its $63 billion backlog to become revenue in the next year. Compared with a guided first quarter of $33 billion or more, that suggests much of the future growth isn't locked in by contracts yet.

Is SpaceX stock still too expensive? I think it is, but by a lot less than before the report. At 15 to 16 times the sales run rate management is guiding to, the price no longer assumes something far-fetched. It does assume the first quarter lands in that range, that compute prices hold up, and that over $80 billion of capital spending this year pays off fast.

I'd want to see SpaceX post a quarter in that range before buying at this price.

SpaceX Corp (NASDAQ:SPCX) is moving closer to its next major growth milestone, with an ambitious revenue outlook and a crucial Starship recovery test ahead prompting Bank of America to raise its price target to $275 following a third-quarter beat. 

The bank said management’s growth ambitions are becoming more achievable than previously expected, prompting it to bring forward revenue estimates for the coming years, including as early as 2027. 

Bank of America also drew a comparison with the 19th-century railroad industry, arguing that both businesses are built around dramatically reducing transportation costs. 

SpaceX remains on track to reach $100 billion in annualized revenue by the end of 2026, a target established last quarter. 

Management now expects first-quarter 2027 revenue of $33 billion to $37 billion, well above the roughly $22 billion anticipated by analysts. 

The company also forecast annual recurring revenue of $500 billion to $1 trillion by the end of 2027, bringing forward its previous target of $1 trillion from 2030. 

Compute spending set to accelerate  Capital spending on orbital and terrestrial computing infrastructure is expected to increase faster than analysts had anticipated. 

Bank of America expects capital expenditure to reach $35 billion to $40 billion in the fourth quarter, up from $19 billion in the third quarter. 

The bank said SpaceX has sufficient liquidity to fund its investment program for the next few quarters, but expects the company to tap debt markets as spending increases. 

It added that rising value per watt of computing capacity could support rapid payback periods, potentially beginning next year. 

Starship launches offer next catalyst  SpaceX completed 35 launches in the third quarter, while Starship continued to progress towards full reusability and expanded satellite deployment capacity. 

Flight 14 marked Starship’s first revenue-generating mission, demonstrating orbital insertion and deploying 26 operational Starlink V3 satellites. 

Flight 15 is expected next month and will target the recovery of both the booster and the spacecraft, a milestone Bank of America considers the program’s next major catalyst. 

Successful execution could pave the way for weekly Starship launches in the first half of 2027, with launch frequency expected to accelerate in the second half. 

Bank of America said progress towards that schedule would reduce execution risks and expand SpaceX’s capacity to deploy Starlink satellites. 

Stocks dropped as a jump in oil prices and renewed concerns about the outlook for the artificial-intelligence trade pushed global investors toward the safety of bonds. George Noble, Managing Partner at Noble Capital Advisors, discusses the outlook for the AI trade and companies like Coreweave and SpaceX.

watch now

President Donald Trump asked Elon Musk to ease restrictions he had imposed on the military-grade version of SpaceX's Starlink system in Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing U.S. officials.

The Starshield system, which Ukraine depends on in its war against Russia, was "working more normally Thursday, shortly after" Trump spoke to Musk by phone, U.S. and Ukrainian officials told the Journal.

The newspaper reported Tuesday that Musk, the founder and CEO of SpaceX and a critic of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, had ordered the Starlink slowdown.

Two unnamed sources in that report said Trump and Musk had discussed the decision to throttle Starlink "soon after" the change first became public last week, while one source said Musk had spoken to Trump prior to imposing the speed cap.

Trump has repeatedly denied involvement in the decision and said he does not know if Musk was behind it.

"I don't know who did it, but I was not involved," Trump said Wednesday.

The Starlink controversy, which drew bipartisan concern and criticism from lawmakers, emerged as Trump has ramped up criticism of Zelenskyy for continuing to target Russian energy infrastructure. At the same time, Trump has pursued a deal to ease sanctions on Russia so it can supply some diesel on the global market.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Wednesday that he does not believe Musk would throttle Starlink without "at least the acquiescence of the White House."

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., the ranking member of the Senate homeland security committee's investigations subcommittee, on Thursday launched an inquiry into how SpaceX's satellite tech was "degraded for Ukraine without notice."

"This decision to limit critical technology for a key ally not only put Ukrainian forces at risk and their people in peril, but raises serious questions about who controls critical capabilities the U.S. government has spent billions of dollars to procure," Blumenthal said in letters to Musk and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The White House and an email associated with Musk did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment on Thursday's report that Trump had asked Musk to lift the restrictions.

This is developing news. Please check back for updates.

Key Takeaways SpaceX's Q3 revenue jumped 161%, beating estimates on AI growth.AI and Starlink are driving SpaceX's growth and profitability.SpaceX's upbeat 2027 outlook puts SpaceX-focused ETFs in focus.
SpaceX (SPCX - Free Report) shares climbed about 8% on Wednesday after the company reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter results, thanks to rapid growth in its artificial intelligence (AI) business and satellite internet operations. Revenue jumped 161% year over year, comfortably beating Wall Street estimates

CEO Elon Musk also weighed in on a potential merger between SpaceX and Tesla (TSLA), calling the idea attractive while emphasizing that a deal is far from certain, as quoted on CNBC.

SpaceX Beats Revenue and Earnings EstimatesSpaceX reported third-quarter revenue of $14.58 billion, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $12.59 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came in at 45 cents, compared with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 11 cents. The company posted operating income of $2.8 billion and net income of $4.4 billion, reversing a net loss of $1.05 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA reached $8.81 billion, well above the $6.59 billion estimate, as quoted on CNBC. Meanwhile, capital expenditures totaled $19.59 billion, including $16.44 billion spent on AI infrastructure. The strong results reflect SpaceX's expanding presence beyond its traditional rocket-launching business, particularly in AI computing and satellite connectivity.

AI Business Emerges as a Major Growth DriverSpaceX's AI division, which the company refers to as “Super Intelligence,” has rapidly become its largest business by revenue. Sales in the segment surged ninefold to $7.56 billion in Q3 from $813 million a year earlier, beating the $6.47 billion analyst estimate, as mentioned on CNBC.

The business also turned profitable in Q3. SpaceX has been expanding its AI computing operations by providing infrastructure and cloud capacity to customers, including Google (GOOGL - Free Report) and Anthropic.

SpaceX said it added $6.7 billion in incremental year-over-year revenue from its Super Intelligence business and related infrastructure. Cloud contracts, solid acquisitions and demand for its Grok AI models and software applications led to the gains (read: Space Meets AI: SpaceX's Cursor Deal Puts These ETFs in Focus).

Starlink Continues to Be Key Growth DriverDespite the rapid expansion of AI, SpaceX's connectivity business remains a major contributor to profitability. The segment includes Starlink, the company's satellite internet service, alongside government and enterprise connectivity offerings.

Connectivity revenue increased 69% year over year to $5.25 billion, surpassing the $4.84 billion analyst estimate, as quoted on CNBC. SpaceX is also exploring opportunities to enter the U.S. mobile market.

Its recent spectrum acquisition plans and regulatory approval for a proposed 15,000-satellite constellation could support its broader connectivity ambitions (read: Telecom Stocks Tumble After SpaceX Spectrum Deal: ETFs in Focus).

SpaceX Projects a Significant Revenue Jump in 2027SpaceX also provided an upbeat outlook for the coming quarters. CFO Bret Johnsen projected first-quarter 2027 revenue of $33 billion to $37 billion, well above the average analyst estimate of $22.2 billion, according to LSEG, as quoted on CNBC.

Musk also said SpaceX could achieve annual recurring revenue of $500 billion to $1 trillion by the end of 2027. That ambitious target is considerably higher than analysts' approximately $110 billion forecast for SpaceX's full-year 2027 revenue, according to LSEG, as mentioned on the same CNBC article.

Upbeat Analysts’ View JPMorgan raised its price target for SpaceX to $500 from $240 following the company's better-than-expected Q3 results, as reported by INDmoney. The stock closed at $159.31 per share on Oct. 21, 2026. SpaceX has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

ETFs in Focus Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with significant exposure to SpaceX that investors may consider.

Baron First Principles ETF (RONB - Free Report) , Roundhill Space & Technology ETF (MARS - Free Report) , VanEck Space ETF (WARP - Free Report) , VanEck Space ETF (ORBX - Free Report) , VegaShares SpaceX & Beyond Earth ETF (XSPC - Free Report) and WisdomTree Space Economy Fund (WSPC - Free Report) are the ETFs thatinvest in SpaceX to a significant extent.

Major leveraged SpaceX ETFs include the Direxion Daily SpaceX Bull & Bear 2X ETF (LOFF - Free Report) , ProShares Ultra SpaceX (SPCF - Free Report) , and T-REX 2X Long SpaceX Daily Target ETF (SPAX - Free Report) .

Since going public in June, Space Exploration Technologies' (SPCX -7.54%) stock has been volatile.

Investors are grappling with the company's $2 trillion valuation and its ambitious agenda, ranging from providing most of the planet's wireless internet one day to launching data centers into space to building a massive Terafab facility.

There are lots of unknowns, but here's what an $8,000 investment in SpaceX could be worth in 2030.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Analysts see massive growth ahead Stocks are typically valued on multiples of their earnings, revenue, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). Companies growing these metrics faster will earn higher multiples. Part of the reason SpaceX has received a $2 trillion valuation is that investors believe the company will grow quickly, and to some extent it already has.

For instance, Wall Street analysts project revenue to more than double to over $45.6 billion by year-end, while adjusted EBITDA is expected to also more than double to over $23 billion, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Assuming that happens, SpaceX's current market cap values the company at 44 times 2026 forward revenue and 87 times forward EBITDA. If we look at analyst estimates in 2030, revenue is projected to absolutely soar to over $492.5 billion, while adjusted EBITDA would surge to over $357 billion.

The 2030 revenue projection is the average among 20 analysts, with a pretty large disparity in estimates. The low estimate is roughly $219 billion, while the high estimate is over $708 billion.

There are also 20 estimates for adjusted EBITDA, ranging from roughly $99 billion to $576.5 billion. If you were to apply the same multiples SpaceX trades at today to these forward estimates, the company would be valued at $21.6 trillion based on revenue and nearly $31 trillion based on adjusted EBITDA.

Typically, as companies get much bigger and their markets become more saturated, their multiples decline. However, if SpaceX grows like this, where revenue and adjusted EBITDA are growing by 10- and 15-fold, who knows what the stock's multiples would be?

If we assume multiples get cut in half, the stock would be valued anywhere from $10.8 trillion on revenue to $15.5 trillion on adjusted EBITDA. If we go with this more conservative approach right now, an $8,000 investment in SpaceX would be worth between $43,200 and $62,000, generating spectacular returns.

A valuation exercise is largely theoretical Assigning a multiple to a stock is done on an imperfect basis, and it's even more difficult when we are largely in uncharted territory. SpaceX is an ultra-fast-growing stock already garnering a multitrillion-dollar valuation. The market is naturally going to be skeptical.

But what's even more important is examining the underlying assumptions that drive revenue and EBITDA to see whether they make sense.

We don't know exactly what's behind each analyst's assumptions, but if they are giving SpaceX credit for launching data centers into space or completing activities with SpaceX's super-heavy-lift, fully reusable rocket, Starship, there is a lot that could go wrong.

Starship is still in testing, and things like data centers in space are still by no means a guarantee, as are many of SpaceX's ambitions. Just looking at this year alone, analysts think revenue will jump from $7.8 billion in the second quarter to over $20 billion by the fourth quarter.

Also, after each quarter, analyst projections can change significantly as they incorporate new information into their models.

Additionally, for SpaceX to achieve everything it wants to, it will incur significant capital expenditures, likely requiring the company to take on substantial debt and issue equity, which would dilute existing shareholders.

On average, analysts project that SpaceX will have close to $1 trillion in capex, including the full years of 2026 through 2030, and generate tens of billions of dollars in negative adjusted free cash flow.

It's hard to know where all this funding might come from, or whether it's even possible.

The risk factor In theory, an investment in SpaceX could generate phenomenal shareholder gains. But it depends on many assumptions that may not materialize and on goals that may not be met, so I still view the stock as a very risky investment right now.