🚀 Virgin Orbit Goes Bankrupt

🚀 Virgin Orbit Goes Bankrupt

April 07, 2023

The Space Scoop

Week Ended 04.07.2023

Happy Friday! In the holiday shortened week, Virgin Orbit filed for bankruptcy, Momentus hired a new CFO, Sidus expanded its Board and Norwegian Cruises will offer Starlink internet. The Q1'23 earnings calendar is also already shaping up. Lets dive in.

Market Max-Q

Top Stories

1) Virgin Orbit ($VORB) filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

  • On Monday afternoon, the signs started to show as VO announced it would not be filing its 10-K on time. It did estimate the following 2022 financials:

    • Revenue: $33.1M

    • Net Loss: $(191.2)M

    • Cash & Equivalents: $51.2M

  • And before most people woke up for the day on Tuesday, VO had filed for bankruptcy. Virgin Investments Limited led the $31.6M debtor-in-possession (DIP) loan to be the future owner of the company.

    • "At this stage, we believe that the Chapter 11 process represents the best path forward to identify and finalize an efficient and value-maximizing sale,” said Dan Hart, CEO.

  • Per bankruptcy filings, VO owes $100-$500M to 200 to 999 creditors. The Top 10 Creditors owed include: Arqit ($ARQQ), US SpaceForce, iQPS, BigBear.AI ($BBAI), YA II PN, All Nippon Airways Trading, Barber Nichols, Redwire ($RDW) and a Spire ($SPIR) subsidiary.

  • Tony Gingiss, the former COO, called out company management  on his way out in an email to employees offering an apology to employees that they “have not heard from the person who should be saying it.”

  • CNBC space reporter Michael Sheetz joined Last Call to break it down.

  • Shares finished the trading day down -23.2%, an abysmal March down -85.9%.

In Other News

Terran Orbital ($LLAP) Files $500M Mixed Shelf Securities Offering 

(SEC)

$LLAP's offering may include common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, depositary shares, warrants, subscription rights, purchase contracts and units. This filing does not indicate that a sale has begun or will occur in the future.

Yahsat Arm Thuraya Invests in Astrocast 

The mobile satellite services subsidiary of Al Yah Satellite agreed to invest in $17.5M in Astrocast through a convertible loan. Both parties have the option to extend for another four years from the originally entered agreement in 2019.

True Anomaly Raises $17M Series A Upon Stealth Emergence 

The Colorado-based startup focuses on spacecraft and software tailored to Space Force needs. The round was led by Eclipse VC in partnership with Riot Ventures, Champion Hill Ventures, Space.VC and Narya.

Chart of the Week

New Space Launch - Total Capital Raised vs Capacity (Source)

Links

• Spire ($SPIR) Awarded NRO Contract for Radio Frequency Data• Planet ($PL) Joins Ursa Space’s Virtual Constellation and Partner Network• Momentus ($MNTS) Hires New CFO• Astra ($ASTR) Provides Delisting Update• Ch-Aviation Selects Spire ($SPIR) for Long-Term Agreement To Provide Airline Insights• Sidus ($SIDU) Expands Board of Directors• Norwegian Cruise Line ($NCL) To Offer Starlink on Board Fleet

Opinion

• Earth Observation Waves & Currents• $UFO: This ETF Is Not Space Junk• Virgin Orbit ($VORB): A Space SPAC Dream Explodes• Telesat ($TSAT) Is Losing Momentum in 2023• Viasat ($VSAT): Large Satellite Player Still in Growth Mode

Earnings Calendar

• $LMT: April 18 - Before Market Open• $IRDM: April 20 - Before Market Open• $BA: April 26 - Before Market Open• $GD: April 26 - Before Market Open• $NOC: April 27 - Before Market Open

*Company confirmed dates only.