Introduction
Around the end of last year, Morgan Stanley doubled its valuation of Elon Musk’s SpaceX from $52 billion to a whopping $100 billion. According to Mark Roemer Oakland, the company also secured around $1.9 billion in a round of equity funding back in August. The private space has great potential and earned over $1 billion in revenue last year. Here’s how:
The Details
1. A growing rocket business – In 2020, SpaceX launched 18 rocket missions and has become a major player in the global satellite launch business. The company charges around $62 million for a satellite launch in a standard commercial Falcon 9 with a new booster. While the cost gets down for reused boosters and goes up for heavier satellites on more powerful rockets, it’s safe to assume each launch at $60 million. That alone would garner SpaceX around $1.2 billion.
2. Funding rounds – SpaceX has secured steady sources of funds since 2008 and 2020 was a very impressive year. In March of 2020, the company raised around $250 million through equity stock offerings, and during August it smashed all records with its $1.9 billion funding round. That’s the largest fundraising push executed by any company that is privately held. This move also bumped the valuation of the space company to $46 billion.
3. The Starship project – While the company has an impressive portfolio of both new and reused rocket launches, Morgan Stanley estimates it to grow tremendously in the next few decades. It’s estimated that the private space company may achieve an astonishing launch cadence of 1 launch every day by 2040. It is also estimated that with its improved reusable rocket technology it can further bring down launch costs. However, that’s going to be possible if Elon Musk can pull off the Starship project.
Musk’s goal of sending significant amounts of cargo and around 100 people on exploration missions to Mars and the Moon is dependent on the Starship project. The Texas facility has been abuzz with activity and the company plans to launch its prototype to higher altitudes and land it safely. If this project is successful, the company would be able to launch as many as 400 satellites on every trip and hypersonic transportation may become a reality.
4. Starlink project – The Starlink project also makes the bulk of the confidence investors have in SpaceX. The ambitious plan of providing internet access to the whole world via tens of thousands of satellites is already in motion. Moreover, even in its infancy, the project has around 895 satellites launched with “extraordinary demand” from around 700,000 potential customers in the United States alone. Morgan Stanley estimates the project to have around 5 percent of the world population as its subscribers by 2040.
Conclusion
Mark Roemer Oakland suggests that you keep an eye out for this company since it has tremendous potential and may earn several times more than a billion in the future.
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