SpaceX will begin trading on the Nasdaq Thursday under the ticker SPCX, completing the most anticipated initial public offering in over a decade. The listing prices at $72 per share, valuing the company at approximately $85 billion [1].

The timing is extraordinary. SpaceX enters public markets as the Hormuz Strait closure convulses global energy markets, Brent crude trades above $140, and equities sell off across sectors. The IPO was filed in March, before the ceasefire collapsed. The company had planned for a May debut but delayed twice — once for regulatory review, once for market conditions that have only worsened [2].

CEO Elon Musk framed the delay as patience, not retreat. In a post on X, Musk wrote that SpaceX's long-term infrastructure value — Starlink, Mars architecture, government contracts — was "independent of any single market event." The statement drew both admiration and skepticism from traders who noted that SpaceX's government contracts include Department of Defense launch services that depend on the same Pentagon budget now strained by the Iran war [1].

The $85 billion valuation prices SpaceX at roughly 25 times trailing revenue — a premium to both defense contractors and aerospace peers. The premium reflects Starlink's subscriber growth and the company's near-monopoly on crewed US spaceflight. It also reflects the IPO market's hunger for a name that is not directly tied to the energy crisis [3].

Retail investor access is limited. The majority of shares are allocated to institutional investors through Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Retail allocation is expected at less than 10% of the offering — a structure that will likely produce significant first-day volatility [2].

-- THEO KAPLAN, San Francisco