MW Space stocks skyrocket after Trump vows to 'pursue our manifest destiny into the stars'
By James Rogers
Trump thrust a spotlight on the future of American space exploration during his inauguration speech Monday
Space stocks soared during Tuesday's trading session, lifted by President Trump's comments championing American space exploration during his inauguration speech Monday.
"We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the stars and stripes on planet Mars," he said. Trump's comments sparked an enthusiastic response from his close ally, SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk, who pumped his arms and gave a thumbs up.
"Ambition is the lifeblood of a great nation, and right now our nation is more ambitious than any other. There's no nation like our nation." Trump added.
Related: SpaceX's Starship blew up. Elon Musk says it's 'barely a bump in the road.'
In September 2024, Musk wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that SpaceX plans to launch about five uncrewed Starship rockets to Mars in two years. SpaceX's giant Starship spacecraft and rocket are designed to play a key role in future Mars exploration missions. The SpaceX spacecraft blew up during its seventh flight test last week, which Musk described as "barely a bump in the road" for the private space company.
Trump's bullishness on American space exploration lifted a host of space stocks Tuesday.
Shares of space-exploration company Intuitive Machines Inc. (LUNR) - which made history last year when its Odysseus lander became the first commercial spacecraft to successfully land on the moon's surface - ended Tuesday's session up 23.9%. Space-launch company Rocket Lab USA Inc.'s $(RKLB)$ shares ended the session up 30.3%, while space-based broadband company AST SpaceMobile Inc. $(ASTS)$ ended the session up 11.2%.
Shares of Redwire Corp. $(RDW.UK)$, which manufactures and supplies space equipment, also soared, ending the session up 51.4%; earth-imaging company Planet Labs PBC $(PL)$ ended the day's trading up 22.3%; satellite-services company Globalstar Inc. $(GSAT)$ rose 4.2%; and Israel-based Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. $(GILT)$ ended the session up 5.1%.
Space-based intelligence company BlackSky Technology Inc.'s (BKSY) stock ended the session up 3.1%; nanosatellite specialist Spire Global Inc. (SPIR) rose 1.1%; and shares of Momentus Inc. (MNTS), which provides satellite transportation and servicing, climbed 24.7%. Shares of space-tourism company Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. $(SPCE)$ ended Tuesday's session up 6.6%.
Related: These are the space stocks to watch in 2025
Shares of the Destiny Tech100 Inc. fund DXYZ, which has SpaceX as the biggest holding in its portfolio, ended Tuesday's session up 8.4%. The Procure Space ETF UFO climbed 9%.
Last week, Blue Origin, the private space company started by Amazon.com Inc. $(AMZN)$ founder Jeff Bezos, completed the first test flight of its huge New Glenn rocket, marking a major milestone for the company. Bezos was in attendance for the inauguration.
Read more: Tech CEOs like Musk, Bezos and Zuckerberg score better seats than some incoming cabinet members at Trump's inauguration
-James Rogers
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 21, 2025 18:33 ET (23:33 GMT)
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