Stock Market Today, Aug. 5: SpaceX Beats Revenue but Faces Capital Spending Pressure
Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ:SPCX), a reusable rockets, spacecraft, and satellite broadband services provider, closed at $108.27, down 13.61%. Earnings results showed a revenue beat, but investors focused on rising capital spending and widening losses.
Trading volume reached 201.2 million shares, coming in about 72% above its three-month average of 117.2 million shares. SpaceX IPO'd in June and has fallen 33% since going public.
How the markets moved today
The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) closed at 7,724, down 0.17%, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) finished at 26,363, down 0.83%. Among satellite communications and launch services companies, Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) closed at $74.82, up 0.46%, while AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) closed at $68.38, down 2.74%. Those moves highlight that investors see potential for multiple winners among rocket launch service providers, but believe SpaceX’s Starlink might be the sole winner in satellite broadband.
What this means for investors
Key takeaways from SpaceX’s first public earnings report included a focus on revenue strength, as well as higher capital spending and free cash flow pressure. Investors punished the stock due to concerns that the more than $18 billion in capital spending during the quarter would not slow down anytime soon.
Long-term investors should welcome it, though, as long as accelerating revenue growth continues. SpaceX has multiple potential profit channels with its rocket launch service, artificial intelligence (AI) compute capacity, and Starlink satellite communications service.
The decline in SpaceX’s stock price may continue in the short term, however, as over $100 billion in stock unlocks on Aug. 6. Waiting until after that to buy shares may be prudent.
Should you buy stock in Space Exploration Technologies right now?
Before you buy stock in Space Exploration Technologies, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Space Exploration Technologies wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $396,758!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,300,820!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 939% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 211% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of August 5, 2026.
Howard Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
