🚀 SpaceX Acquires Pioneer Aero

🚀 SpaceX Acquires Pioneer Aero

December 01, 2023

The Space Scoop

Week Ended 12.01.2023

Happy Friday! Markets closed the week higher following the shortened holiday week. SpaceX was in the news revolving around an acquisition and investment thesis. SatixFy reported 9M earnings and Ursa Major raised a Series D round. Lets dive in.

Market Max-Q

Top Stories

1) SpaceX quietly acquired Pioneer Aerospace for $2.2M.

  • Via Florida bankruptcy court, SpaceX has acquired its supplier of drogue parachutes for the Company's Dragon capsules. The acquisition was approved by a judge on November 22.

  • This is SpaceX’s first public acquisition since 2021 when the company acquired small satellite provider Swarm for $524M in a mostly stock deal.

2) ARK Invest ($ARKX) provided its thesis behind its receive investment in SpaceX. Highlights include:

  • "In 2023, SpaceX is launching a rocket roughly every four days.Despite demonstrating the capability and robustness of reusable rockets back in 2017, ARK believes SpaceX has no competitor capable of rocket reusability. . . SpaceX has the most aggressive and advanced technological roadmaps for rocket, satellite, and interplanetary development underway today." 

  • "The largest near-term opportunity is the Starlink satellite constellation designed to deliver global internet access. SpaceX has already deployed 1,000s of Starlink satellites into orbit . . .and offering broadband service to the underserved in the US could represent an addressable market of roughly $10B per year. Globally, there are billions of individuals who lack consistent internet access."

  • "We believe that the satellite connectivity market could approach $100B annually over the medium term, and Starlink is well-placed to win the lion’s share given their unique positioning."

  • "If Starship is successful in achieving rapid reusability, ARK’s research suggests there should be a $270B annual revenue opportunity for point-to-point transportation."

3) SatixFy ($SATX) reported 9M 2023 earnings. Highlights include:

  • Cash & Equivalents: $6.2M

  • Revenue: $8.9M, +31% YoY

  • R&D: $25.1M, +89% YoY

  • Oper Loss: $(28.1)M vs. $(16.8)M

  • Shares: +1.7%

In Other News

Astra Raises $2.7M Additional Debt 

$ASTR announced additional debt raise from JMCM and ACME Ventures, along with co-founders Chris Kemp and Adam London on the 21st. The Board has yet to publicly address the take private proposal made earlier this month.

Ursa Major Raises $138M Series D and D-1 Round 

The rocket propulsion startup announced the two rounds of funding led by Explorer 1 Fund and Eclipse, with participation from RTX Ventures, BlackRock, Exor Ventures, Mack & Co, XN, and other institutional shareholders. Ursa will continue to develop Lynx, its solid rocket motor program and scale production capacity.

Chart of the Week

November Space Stock Performance: In an overall bounce back month, Astra ($SIDU) led +69% on news of a take-private offer by their CEO and CTO. Sidus ($SIDU) continued its downward trajectory, closing -39% for the month.

Links

• Spire ($SPIR) Launches High-Resolution Weather Forecast for Utilities & Commodity Traders• Tata Advanced Systems and Satellogic ($SATL) Sign Strategic Contract to Build LEO Satellites in India• Terran Orbital ($LLAP) Suing Its Former CTO Following Calls To Install New CEO and Reconstitute The Board• SatixFy ($SATX) Receives NYSE American Notice of Non-Compliance with Listing Standards

Opinion

• Viasat ($VSAT) Has Sky-High Potential• Viasat ($VSAT): Connected Mobility Growth Tailwinds, Strong Backlog, 2024 Satellite Launches Create Opportunity• Rocket Lab ($RKLB): Disruptive Growth Launch Leader Aiming For Space Domination• Intuitive Machines ($LUNR): Technical Marvels, Not Yet Profitable

Earnings Calendar

• $PL: Dec 7 - After Market Close

*Company confirmed dates only.