It was a strange day to own a space stock.
While SpaceX jumped about 19% in its first session as a public company, several of the smaller, already-public names in the sector went sharply in the other direction
As of this writing, shares of Rocket Lab (NASDAQ: RKLB), AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ: ASTS), and Intuitive Machines (NASDAQ: LUNR) were all down meaningfully, even as the company they’re so often compared to was being celebrated. So, what happened? One widely floated explanation is rotation.
With retail demand for SpaceX shares running hot, the theory goes that some investors sold their existing space holdings to free up cash for an allocation in the debut. If that’s the main driver, the drop says little about these businesses and a lot about a one-day scramble for shares. But the move may also reflect something more durable: investors taking a harder look at how these companies stack up against a far larger, better-funded rival.