SpaceX shares rise even as company insiders get a chance to sell for the first time

NEW YORK (AP) — Stock in Elon Musk’s space company rose Thursday even after many SpaceX insiders were freed up to sell for the first time.

Investors in SpaceX have pushed the shares down sharply in recent days in anticipation of insiders possibly selling in the first of several so-called lockup expirations that free them up to trade. More than 900 million shares became newly available to buy or sell with Thursday’s release, doubling what was available previously.

SpaceX shares rose 6.1% to close at $114.92. A day earlier they had one of their biggest routs in SpaceX’s short history as a public company, dropping nearly 14%.

Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas said the expiration of lockup provisions that bar employees and others from selling was an opportunity for others to get into the stock cheaply. He believes the stock could rise to $300 by the middle of next year, nearly triple its current level.

Morgan Stanley was one of the investment banks that earned big fees helping take SpaceX public last month.

Earlier this week, SpaceX reported it had lost $541 million, or 9 cents per share, in the three months through June, less than half what financial analysts had forecast. Revenue jumped to $7.8 billion, up more than 90% from the year-earlier period.

The company also posted a massive increase in spending on R&D and infrastructure, particularly involving artificial intelligence, and other major projects. Investors are growing increasingly nervous with big capital spending figures in technology companies, triggering sell-offs.

In June, Musk sold SpaceX shares to the public for the first time in the biggest initial public offering ever. Shares jumped as high as $225 a share, briefly making Musk a trillionaire.

The plunge in the stock since has wiped out hundreds of billions of dollars in market value, leaving the shares trading at even less than its initial $135 offering price.