Everything about SpaceX stock out of this world. Its IPO on 12 June will be the biggest in history with a valuation of $1.8trn. Only six US companies are worth more. The hype and excitement will be off the planet. Should UK investors book their flight?
SpaceX, or the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, is a key part of Musk’s dream of building a “self-sufficient city on Mars”. Who wouldn’t want to bet their retirement on that?
Do you believe in Elon Musk?
SpaceX has undoubtedly made a great leap by making space rockets reusable. Before that, the hardware was ditched like used earbuds. But the competition is catching up, notably Blue Origin, courtesy of Amazon‘s Jeff Bezos. Peter Beck’s Rocket Lab is also off to a flier. This suits the US government. It doesn’t want to become overly dependent on Elon Musk. It wants competition for its lucrative contracts.
Here’s my biggest worry. Investors are being asked to believe in a company that lost almost $5bn last year. And $4bn in the first quarter of 2026. The main culprit is SpaceX’s artificial intelligence operation xAI, which is blasting through capital. It made a net loss of $6.36bn in 2025. That’s AI for you.
SpaceX’s satellite internet constellation Starlink is making money, with more than 10m global customers. But it has to constantly replenish its fleet of 9,600 satellites, which quickly erode as their low orbit creates friction. Musk spent 20 years building up SpaceX. I’m concerned he’s only coming to market now because he needs the cash.
Should investors buy Scottish Mortgage shares instead?
The SpaceX share price could climb after the IPO, blasted skywards on a wave of hype. At some point, I fear gravity will assert itself. Even Musk can’t defy the laws of physics. So no, I won’t be queuing up to buy SpaceX.
Having said that, I don’t need to. I already hold SpaceX via investment trust Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (LSE:SMT), which has a $4bn stake in the group. While it invests in other US tech giants such as Amazon and Nvidia, almost 20% of the trust is now invested in SpaceX. It got in at an early stage, and has done very nicely out of it. So have I. The Scottish Mortgage share price is up 52% in the last year, and 118% since I added the trust to my SIPP three years ago.
SpaceX has put rocket boosters under Scottish Mortgage, but I’m worried about the fallout from that IPO. If SpaceX proves overvalued, or the AI bubble impodes, Scottish Mortgage will also fall back to earth.
I’m not going to sell up though. Betting against big tech has been a bad call for years. Scottish Mortgage crashed by half in 2022, during the last tech sell-off. Short-term volatility is the price we pay for the superior long-term outperformance of equities. But I’ve got enough exposure to this shooting star for now. I’d suggest investors think about treading carefully too, both around Scottish Mortgage and SpaceX. We’re entering uncharted territory.
Should you invest £5,000 in Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Plc right now?
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Harvey Jones owns shares in Nvidia and Scottish Mortgage.
