Key facts
- SpaceX received investment-grade credit ratings from Moody's, Fitch, and S&P Global.
- The ratings were assigned shortly after the company's record-breaking IPO.
- SpaceX shares fell over 18% from their peak valuation on Thursday.
- Moody's cited SpaceX's franchise strength in orbital launches and Starlink as key factors.
- The company's AI buildout and Starship V3 development pose execution risks, according to Moody's.
SpaceX has achieved a significant milestone by securing investment-grade credit ratings from all three major agencies—Moody's, Fitch, and S&P Global—just days after its historic initial public offering. The IPO, which raised approximately $85.7 billion, marked the largest in history. Moody's assigned SpaceX a Baa1 rating, citing its strong franchise as a leading orbital launch provider and operator of the Starlink satellite broadband network. Fitch issued a BBB+ rating, and S&P Global assigned a BBB rating, both with stable outlooks. These endorsements position SpaceX's debt in investment-grade territory, potentially lowering borrowing costs for its expansion plans.
Despite the credit rating achievements, SpaceX's stock experienced a sharp decline on Thursday, closing at $185, down over 18% from its record high of $225.6 reached on Tuesday. The company's valuation briefly topped $3 trillion before this pullback. Moody's report highlighted Starlink as the primary cash flow generator, underpinning revenue and earnings growth projections through 2028, with 12 million subscribers as of early June. The agency also noted substantial third-party compute deals with Anthropic and Google, totaling $75 billion, as evidence of potential in its AI division.
However, Moody's also identified key risks, including the heavy capital demands of SpaceX's AI buildout, sustained negative free cash flow, and reliance on the next-generation Starship V3 vehicle. Elevated governance risks tied to the company's concentrated voting power and dependence on Elon Musk were also cited. The stock's retreat has led to a reshuffle in its global corporate standing, with SpaceX now ranking as the sixth most valuable listed firm by market capitalization, down from its earlier peak where it briefly surpassed Amazon and Microsoft.