Forget SpaceX's Nasdaq-100 Inclusion: This Is a Much Bigger Catalyst for Shares on July 7
Key Points
SpaceX completely rewrote Wall Street's record books with its June 12 initial public offering (IPO), and will do so again on July 7, courtesy of new fast-entry rules for the Nasdaq-100.
Wall Street chatter about SpaceX has been relatively quiet -- and there's a legal reason for that.
July 7 should open the floodgates for Wall Street coverage of SpaceX.
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Although earnings season is right around the corner, all eyes are on Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) (NASDAQ: SPCX) this week -- and with good reason.
A little over three weeks ago, SpaceX rewrote Wall Street's record books by raising $85.7 billion with its initial public offering (IPO), including the underwriters' option. Tomorrow, July 7, it'll once again alter history by joining one of Wall Street's most prestigious indexes, the Nasdaq-100. But what if I told you that SpaceX's entry into the Nasdaq-100 isn't tomorrow's biggest catalyst for the stock?
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Image source: Getty Images.
SpaceX will enter the Nasdaq-100 on July 7
In a presumed effort to attract Musk's company to list its shares on the Nasdaq (NASDAQ: NDAQ) stock exchange, Nasdaq Global Indexes amended several rules concerning Nasdaq-100 inclusion. These updated criteria, effective as of May 1, removed the low-float requirement and significantly shortened the timeline to Nasdaq-100 inclusion from around three months to only 15 trading days. Today, July 6, marks SpaceX's 15th trading session as a public company.
Nasdaq Global Indexes wasn't the only committee that made changes ahead of SpaceX's debut. The U.S. Russell Indexes also reduced the wait period for large-cap inclusion in the Russell 1000 and Russell 3000 to just five trading days, down from once per quarter.
To be clear, this means only the S&P 500 will exclude SpaceX shortly after its IPO.
-- Hedgeye (@Hedgeye) June 4, 2026
FTSE Russell adds eligible megacap IPOs after the close of the 5th trading day.
Nasdaq adds them about 15 trading days after listing.
The S&P 500 kept its rules, so SpaceX waits the full...
What makes these adjustments so impactful is that fast entry inclusion will force index funds tracking the Nasdaq-100 (as well as Russell 1000 and Russell 3000) to purchase shares of SpaceX. This represents tens of billions of dollars in passive buying that may provide a solid lift to SpaceX's shares.
But while SpaceX's addition to the Nasdaq-100 has been well-telegraphed, tomorrow's premier catalyst has flown completely under the radar.
Image source: Getty Images.
Most of Wall Street can now legally chime in on SpaceX
If there's one thing you can always count on from Wall Street's leading investment banks and financial institutions, it's their willingness to weigh in on the stock market's largest companies. However, you may have noticed that chatter about SpaceX has been relatively quiet -- and there's a legal reason why.
When SpaceX went public, it had 21 separate underwriters. For context, you can count the number of underwriters for most IPOs on one hand. SpaceX's lead underwriter was Goldman Sachs, with most of the remaining 20 functioning as participating underwriters.
According to Securities and Exchange Commission rules, participating underwriters must abide by a 25-calendar-day quiet period following an IPO. During this time, participating underwriters aren't allowed to issue research reports, make buy/sell recommendations, or set price targets on the company they helped take public.
🚨 SpaceX has officially priced its IPO at $135 per share and is set to begin trading tomorrow under the ticker $SPCX 🚀
-- Herbert Ong (@herbertong) June 12, 2026
The company is offering 555.6 million shares, raising approximately $75 billion in what is expected to be the largest IPO in history.@SpaceX also granted... https://t.co/1madtRs7pi pic.twitter.com/OZdixY7knl
July 6 will be the 25th calendar day since SpaceX started trading, meaning July 7 can open the proverbial floodgates for Wall Street coverage. Given that the company's underwriters were allotted shares, investors can practically count on a majority of these participating underwriters initiating coverage of SpaceX with a buy-equivalent rating and a generous price target.
But investors would be wise not to take the bait. While a perfect storm of catalysts is set up for July 7, SpaceX's staggered and accelerated share lockup period is rapidly approaching, and it has the potential to decimate retail investors.
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Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool recommends Nasdaq. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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