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🚀 Sierra's $1.4 Billion Funding

🚀 Sierra's $1.4 Billion Funding

November 19, 2021

The Space Scoop

Week Ending 11.19.2021

Happy Friday and a warm welcome to our new readers! What a week - roughly $1.5 billion dollars raised were by space companies, Rocket Lab announced another acquisition, Richard Branson sold yet another $300M of Virgin Galactic stock, and we had trouble deciding to what to include in this week's wrap-up (so please excuse the length of our Quick Links section 😅).

Market Max-Q 📈

Rocket Lab Acquires Planetary Systems

$RKLB announced its third acquisition of the Maryland-based spacecraft separation systems company for $42M in cash and ~24M of stock. PSC has the potential for an additional $14M of stock via a performance earnout based on 2022 and 2023 financial results. PSC has a 100% mission success heritage to date across 100+ missions. The acquisition will let Rocket Lab to leverage PSC’s brand and product offering across its vertically integrated Space Systems division. The acquisition is expected to close in Q4'2021.The announcement also came with a Q3'2021 earnings release after market close. Highlights: • Revenue above higher end of prior guidance at $5.3M• Backlog increased to $183M, from $141M as of Q2'2021• Backlog currently at $237M (as of November 15)• Space Systems Revenue grew +360% YoY, to represent 27% of Total Revenue 9M'2021“Rocket Lab continued to deliver reliable end-to-end space services, including completion of another successful Electron launch delivering a satellite to orbit for the Space Force, progressing development of the Lunar Photon spacecraft for the upcoming CAPSTONE mission to the Moon for NASA, and delivering the highest volume of star trackers and reaction wheels to customers in a single quarter from our satellite components business,” said Founder and CEO, Peter Beck. The stock finished +8.3% the following day.

AST SpaceMobile Reports Third Quarter Results

$ASTS also released earnings after market close Monday. Highlights include:• Cash of $360.4M• Zero financial debt (rare, huh?)• Total Operating Expenses of $23.1M, compared to $25.1M in Q2'2021 • Invested $56.7M in the BlueWalker 3 satellite• Invested $19.9M in Property & Equipment“Since our last quarterly business update, we have made significant progress and we are now entering the last stage of build, integration and testing of our next satellite, BlueWalker 3,” said Abel Avellan, Chairman and CEO of AST SpaceMobile. Abel added, “Today, we are very pleased to announce that we have entered into an agreement to purchase an additional 100,000 square foot facility in Midland, Texas, complementing our existing 85,000 square foot headquarters facility. This is an important step for the industrialization of our technology, as this will provide us the potential capacity to reach our production goal of six satellites per month.” The stock finished lower by -2.7%.

Astroscale and Virgin Orbit Partner Up

The satellite servicing and orbital sustainability startup is partnering with $NGCA to establish a new partnership that will drive the future of space sustainability and on-orbit servicing ecosystem. Astroscale has plans for dozens of missions over the next decade and is in discussions with Virgin Orbit to launch at least 10 of those on LauncherOne. The two are also working toward a future joint mission concept focused on satellite servicing and utilizing robotic arms payload and/or docking plate on the LauncherOne system. “The space industry is on the cusp of a new era, with flexible and responsive launch and satellite servicing an emerging reality,” said Nobu Okada, Founder & CEO of Astroscale. “Virgin Orbit is a like-minded company that is revolutionizing the way we launch and access space while maintaining a commitment to space sustainability.” Virgin shares finished the day +0.9%.

SPAC Interest Dwindling

You couldn't go wrong taking a company public via SPAC in early 2021. Today? It appears investor appetite and craze has faded. This week at Ascend Conference, Phil Ingle, managing director at Morgan Stanley, discussed the weakening interest in SPACs across the broader market and how it may lead to difficulties for other space companies to continue to take this route. “There are real signs of fatigue in the SPAC market right now”, he said. The two key factors: 1) Diminishing size of PIPE funding rounds and 2) Rising rates of redemptions. Private Investment in Public Equity, or PIPE, help bolster the case for a SPAC deal. “It validates the valuation, it validates the story for the public market,” he continued. SPAC deals in February 2021 included $15B of PIPEs. By October, that fell to $800M (down -95%) and, through the first half of November, only $200M has been announced (down -98%). “The PIPE market has completely dried up.” Early SPACs like Rocket Lab ($RKLB) had a $470M PIPE. Terran Orbital ($TWNT), which announced plans to go public through a SPAC merger October 28, included an initial PIPE of just $50M. Redemption is when shareholders of the SPAC chose to take their capital back rather than hold stock in the merged company. Redemption rates across the market were about 10% earlier this year, but have grown to 70% by November. That reduces the amount of capital the merged company retains. “If you’re a space company and looking for capital in the SPAC market, ...capital becomes very uncertain.”

Sierra Space Amasses $1.4B Series A

Yes, you read that right. Billion. This follows the news of Sierra Nevada spinning off the company's space division in April of this year and now values the company at $4.5B. This capital represents both the largest aerospace and defense raise globally in 2021 and the second-largest capital raise globally in the sector ever. The investment was led by General Atlantic, Coatue and Moore Strategic Ventures, with participation BlackRock Private Equity Partners and AE Industrial Partners. More specifically, the funding will accelerate the development of the Dream Chaser Spaceplane, the reusable orbital spaceplane. It will also support the development of the Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) Habitat, a modular, three-story commercial habitation, business and science platform. Both products are critical components for Orbital Reef, the new commercial space station announced in partnership with Blue Origin. “We are building the next generation of space transportation systems and in-space infrastructures and destinations that will enable humanity to build and sustain thriving civilizations beyond Earth,” said Tom Vice, CEO of Sierra Space.

In Other News 🛰️

Morpheus Space Launches Hardware-As-A-Service

(PR Newsire)

The satellite mobility provider announced Sphere Safe, a HaaS and on-demand pricing model, designed to make propulsion technology more accessible for satellite and small spacecraft manufacturers. Spire ($SPIR) will be first to adapt the product.

HydroSat Raises $10M Seed Funding

(TechCrunch)

The geospatial data startup will use the capital to accelerate the commercialization of its ground temperature analytics product. The round was led by OTB Ventures. Other participants include Freeflow Ventures, Cultivation Capital, Santa Barbara Venture Partners and Expon Capital.

Inversion Space Raises $10M Seed Round

(SpaceNews)

The LA-based space startup funding will accelerate the development of a reentry capsule to bring cargo from space back to Earth. The round was led by Spark Capital, with participation from YCombinator, Embedded Ventures, Funders Club, Liquid 2 Ventures, Kyle Vogt and David Hodge.

Fleet Space Technologies Raises $26.4M Series B

(Company)

The raise will continue to enable global satellite connectivity for Internet of Things and now values the company at $126M. The round was led by Artesian Venture Partners, Blackbird Ventures, Grok and Horizons Ventures.

Turion Space Raises $4.7M Seed Round

(Payload)

The satellite servicing and space debris removal startup graduated from YCombinator's S21 batch. The round was led by Reinforced Ventures, Soma Capital, Forward VC, Gaingels, Imagination VC, S2 Capital, FoundersX Ventures and others.

Quick Links 🔗

• How Ex-SpaceX Engineers Are Fueling The Space Race With Firefly• Satellite Groups Face Race To Scale Up or Become Space Junk• L3Harris ($LHX) to Upgrade Space Force Counter-Communications via $125M Contract• Planet ($DMYQ): Niccolo De Masi To Join Board of Directors and Recent CEO Podcast Appearance• Spire ($SPIR) Appoints Dirk Hoke to the Company’s Board of Directors• Terran Orbital ($TWNT) CEO Bloomberg Interview Regarding SPAC IPO• OrbitFab and Dawn Aerospace To Collaborate• Exolaunch Signs Multi-Launch Agreement for More Capacity With SpaceX• Exo-Space Awarded $50K U.S. Government Contract• Northrop Grumman ($NOC): Announces NASA Lunar Terrain Vehicle Team and Appoints Tom Wilson President of Space Systems• Astroscale Launches Docking Plate to Capture Defunct Satellites• Redwire ($RDW) To Provide Navigation and Power Technology for NASA’s First Planetary Defense Mission• Kayhan Space and Scout Space Partner To Develop a Space Monitoring Service via Data Collection• Viasat ($VSAT) Appoints Kevin Harkenrider to Chief Operating Officer• Virgin Galactic ($SPCE): Jefferies Lowers Price Target to $30 and CEO Branson Sells 15.6M Shares Worth $300M• ICEYE: Partners with Aon ($AON), Signs MOU with G42, and Pursues CRADA With U.S. Army• NASA Selects Intuitive Machines for New Lunar Science Delivery• Startup Outpost Working on Reusable Satellites and Payloads• American Alchemy Interviews Varda Space Co-Founders• NASA and Space Force's Releases "State of the Space Industry" Report - Summary Here• Maritime Launch Services Announces Nanoracks As First Payload Services Provider• Telesat ($TSAT) Begins Trading on the Nasdaq• Mynaric ($MYNA) CEO Talks Nasdaq IPO, Plans For Growth

Opinion

• How To Invest In Business Models From Outer Space• Don't Dismiss Blockchain for Space• Top 4 Space Exploration Stocks to Buy Now• What You Need to Know About the Next Big Space IPO• Astra Space ($ASTR) Offers Sky-High Potential At The Expense Of Heightened Risk• Morgan Stanley Names Maxar ($MAXR) A Top Pick• EchoStar ($SATS): Balance Sheet Trends By The Numbers• Google-Backed Planet ($DMYQ) Set To Soar• Virgin Galactic ($SPCE): A Great But Overpriced Venture• Speculate With Rocket Lab ($RKLB) as It Grows Through Acquisitions

Earnings Calendar 📅

• $RDW: Rescheduled • $ACCMF: November 25th

🚀 Sierra's $1.4 Billion Funding