Intuitive Machines Stock Gets Price-Target Boost From B. Riley After Major NASA Contract Win: Retail Cheer Stays Robust

Shares of Intuitive Machines, Inc. (LUNR) surged over 38% on Wednesday, marking their biggest one-day gain since February, following a significant contract win from NASA. A Wall Street analyst now sees more than a 50% upside to the stock from current levels.

The aerospace start-up, focused on lunar commercialization, secured an initial $500 million Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) contract for NASA’s Near Space Network (NSN) Services program, a deal that could eventually balloon to $4.8 billion.

In light of this news, B. Riley raised its price target for Intuitive Machines from $8 to $12, maintaining a ‘Buy’ rating.

The brokerage pointed out that while it anticipated multiple awardees for the initial contract, NASA’s decision to sole-source the deal to Intuitive underscores the company’s pivotal role in the agency’s lunar endeavors.

This exclusive win, B. Riley says, not only cements Intuitive Machines as the backbone of lunar data transmission but also “de-risks the investment thesis that Intuitive is quickly establishing itself as a full-service space exploration company on the cusp of layering in hundreds of millions of dollars of high-margin services revenue.”

Benchmark’s Josh Sullivan echoed similar confidence in Intuitive Machines, highlighting the company’s central role in NASA’s lunar strategy. The analyst maintained a $10 price target, noting that LUNR’s success with NASA makes it an increasingly attractive bet for investors.

The company’s reputation has been on the rise since its IM-1 mission, part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, which earlier this year made history with the successful landing of its Odysseus lander on the moon.

Retail interest in Intuitive Machines has been growing at a rapid pace.

On Stocktwits, LUNR’s follower count has jumped by over 32% in the last three months, with message volume skyrocketing by an eye-popping 4,500%.

Sentiment on the stock was ‘bullish’ (72/100) on Thursday, with message activity remaining extremely high.

One prominent Stocktwits user highlighted a potentially bigger opportunity for the company, mentioning a pending Direct-to-Earth (DTE) contract that could further enhance Intuitive’s standing.

Another user expressed optimism about the stock’s future: “Waiting for a squeeze, it could be today, shorts have to cover… this is a great company and I’m long.”

LUNR stock is up more than 214% so far this year, outpacing gains by the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.

Read next: Tesla Stock’s Retail Chatter Builds After Weak Wednesday Finish: What’s Driving the Buzz?
 

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