SPCX Stock Extends Post-IPO Rout: Starship Launch Scrub Deepens Slide As Short Sellers Build $25B Bear Bet

• The latest Starship launch was scrubbed after some engines failed to start, triggering an automatic abort.
• Musk said two Raptor engines would be replaced, with another launch attempt likely early next week.
• The delayed Starship mission was meant to deploy 20 Starlink satellites and advance SpaceX’s Starlink and Artemis ambitions.

SpaceX (SPCX) shares extended their post-IPO selloff in extended-trading hours on Thursday after the company scrubbed the latest launch of its Starship mega rocket, adding fresh pressure to a stock already trading below its $135 offering price.

SPCX stock fell more than 3% overnight after closing at $131.11 on Thursday, down 3.1% during the regular session. Shares have now declined for five consecutive trading days and remain sharply below the record highs reached shortly after SpaceX’s blockbuster public debut last month.

SpaceX Launch Scrub Raises Fresh SPCX Concerns 

SpaceX had planned to launch Starship from its Starbase facility in South Texas during a 90-minute window beginning at 6:45 p.m. ET on Thursday. Minutes after the launch window opened, however, the company announced during its livestream that it was standing down for the day. “Some of the engines didn’t start, triggering an automatic launch abort,” Musk said on X. He also said in a separate post that two Raptor engines would be removed and replaced before SpaceX attempted another launch with a “most probable” launch timing of early next week.

A SpaceX employee said during the livestream that a hold was triggered on the Super Heavy booster, which shut down its engines as they were beginning to ignite. The scrubbed launch would have marked the first flight of Starship V3, the latest version of SpaceX’s roughly 400-foot-tall reusable rocket, since the company completed its record-setting IPO last month.

SPCX shares had slipped below their $135 IPO price on Wednesday, even before the aborted Starship launch, marking the first time the stock traded beneath its offering level. Economist Peter Schiff warned on X that more pain could be ahead, noting that SPCX is already "6.5% below its IPO price and 44% below its high" before any major lockups expire. Those expirations could "expand the potential tradable float 8X by year-end," he said, adding: "Houston, we have a problem!" 

SPCX Short Bets Jump To 29% Of Float

Bearish bets against SpaceX have swelled to about 185 million shares, or 29% of the public float, worth $25 billion, according to S3 Partners. Just three weeks earlier, short interest stood near 40 million shares, representing about 5% to 7% of the float. S3’s Matthew Unterman said that demand from short sellers has remained strong since the IPO, as traders bet on further weakness amid launch setbacks, a sliding share price and looming stock unlocks, CNBC noted.

Only about 5% of SpaceX’s 13 billion shares were initially available for trading. KeyBanc estimates another 11% could unlock around second-quarter earnings, followed by additional 4% tranches and later releases tied to milestones and third-quarter results, as per the CNBC report. Musk’s 42% stake remains locked until June 2027.

Scrubbed Starship Mission Delays 

The scrubbed mission was set to carry 20 next-generation Starlink satellites and test progress on Starship, a rocket central to SpaceX’s plans for Starlink expansion, cheaper launches and NASA’s Artemis program. The flight followed a troubled May test in which several booster engines failed to reignite, sending the Super Heavy stage into the Gulf of Mexico. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) later cleared Starship to fly after SpaceX introduced hardware and software fixes tied to propulsion heat effects and faulty engine-alarm settings.

How Do Retail Traders Feel About SPCX?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for SPCX has been ‘bearish’ over the past week amid a modest 10% rise in 24-hour message volumes.

One bearish user said, “$SPCX it won't relaunch for days, the problem is that they should launch every day at regime.. datacenters are not feasible, at least in the short term... it's a mess, 13$ EOY”

Another user said, “$SPCX Fair value for this stock at the moment is around $30 tops, all the insiders bought under $10, they already have their market sell orders in when the lockout period ends”

SPCX stock declined 35% over the past month. 

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