Intuitive Machines Stock Tanks After-Hours As Lunar Lander's Touchdown Remains Unclear : Retail Speculates On Likely Outcome

Intuitive Machines (LUNR) stock plunged 29.5% in Thursday's after-hours trading to lows last seen four months ago after its spacecraft landed on the Moon, only for its status to become uncertain.

The company said its lunar lander, Athena, landed on the Moon at about 12:30 p.m. ET but could not determine the exact landing spot.

CEO Steve Altemus said in a press conference that the company does not believe the lander is at the 'correct altitude' on the Moon's surface.

The company's chief technology officer said the lander is located somwehere at the Moon's south pole in the 50-meter landing zone on Mons Mouton.

The firm launched the lander from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket on Feb. 26. Last year, its lander Odysseus also tipped over while landing on the Moon's surface after one of its legs broke.

The company hoped to test several technologies as part of NASA's efforts to build a communication base. Last year, the space agency awarded the company a $4.8 billion contract to set up a communications system.

According to a Stocktwits poll, 35% of users so far believe the mission was a 'total failure', 21% think it was a 'successful landing,' and 20% said it was partially working.

One user said that calling the landing "a total failure' is silly, and that the mission was a learning experience.

Another user wondered why the lander had no equipment to self-correct its position following the landing.

Intuitive Machines started gaining heavy traction among retail investors last year, fueled by milestones like its historic lunar touchdown with the Odysseus lander and multiple NASA contracts.

Over the past year, Intuitive Machines shares have more than doubled.

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