Starship's Orbital Debut Slips to September 28 as NASA Adds $946 Million in Crew Flights
Published on 09/20/2026 at 08:40 | Editorial boerse-global.de
SpaceX has pushed the maiden orbital attempt of its Starship vehicle back by roughly a week, with the launch now targeted for September 28. The flight is meant to send the heavy-lift system to an altitude of about 275 kilometers, carrying 26 next-generation communications satellites built for the company's own constellation. Success would mark the first time Starship reaches orbital status and would double as a debut deployment run for the Starlink V3 hardware — a key expansion step for the network.
The brief delay landed on a market already inclined to take profits. After a strong run in preceding weeks, plenty of traders used the pause as an excuse to lock in gains, and SpaceX shares finished Friday at EUR 132.70, down 1.6 percent on the day. Even so, the stock sits 14 percent above its 50-day moving average of EUR 116.71, and the company's market capitalization stood at EUR 1,776.62 billion.
Retail selling did much of the damage. JPMorgan data shows private investors offloaded roughly $570 million worth of SpaceX stock over the past three weeks, with $250 million of that exiting in the most recent trading week alone — the steepest weekly retreat ever recorded for that investor group.
Ownership registers also shifted. Valor Equity Partners transferred 8.5 percent of its stake to fund investors, a move Bloomberg valued at about $8.5 billion. Board member Antonio Gracias, for his part, remains one of the company's largest shareholders with a holding of more than 460 million shares. Such reshuffling by early venture backers is routine after successful listings, though it added to the cautious mood among traders in the current climate.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying SpaceX?
NASA Deepens Its Bet on Crewed Flights
Operationally, SpaceX had a stronger Friday. NASA awarded the company a $946 million contract covering three additional crewed missions to the International Space Station, lifting the program's total value through 2030 to $5.92 billion. The extension cements SpaceX's standing in the government space sector at a time when rival capsule programs are still working through delays.
Revenue momentum backs that position. Second-quarter sales climbed nearly 92 percent to $7.81 billion, a figure that prompted Baron Capital's Ron Baron to restate his optimistic view on the continued build-out of the satellite business.
Britain Confirms Starshield Use
Beyond NASA, the security side of the business is gathering pace. According to Reuters, the United Kingdom spent close to $40 million on SpaceX satellite services, becoming the first nation outside the United States to publicly acknowledge deploying the company's military-focused Starshield technology for its own communications.
SpaceX at a turning point? This analysis reveals what investors need to know now.
Progress is coming on other fronts too. Space Cargo, the company's mission integrator unit, has signed its first European customer.
The orbital test now serves as the next real stress test for the Starship program. Should the mission go to plan, it clears a path toward regular operation of the next satellite generation and strengthens SpaceX's hand in future transport contracts.
Ad
SpaceX Stock: New Analysis - 20 September
Fresh SpaceX information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
