SpaceX (SPCX) storms the market: shares surged 32% after a record IPO, and ETF issuers launch leveraged products
The space race on the Nasdaq is just beginning. Following a historic initial public offering that raised approximately $75 billion, SpaceX shares (ticker SPCX) continue to show explosive momentum. On the second day of trading alone, the quotes settled at $178, a 32% increase from the offering price of $135 set just a week ago.
This rapid surge is not just the result of hype surrounding Elon Musk's name. The SpaceX IPO became the largest in world history, more than doubling the previous record held by Saudi Aramco ($29.4 billion in 2019). The order book was oversubscribed more than three times before trading even officially began: investors submitted bids for approximately $250 billion. Goldman Sachs acted as the lead underwriter for the process.
On Friday, the price of SPCX jumped nearly 19% to $160.95, and by Monday it had reached the $192 mark. The company's market capitalization after going public is estimated at around $2.3 trillion, instantly placing it among the most valuable publicly traded companies in the world.
ETF Issuers Catch the Wave
The market immediately responded to demand by launching a whole range of leveraged instruments. Asset manager GraniteShares brought exchange-traded funds 2x Long SpaceX Daily ETF (SPAL) and 2x Short (SNK) to market with a fee of 1.50%. Simultaneously, Defiance launched its own double-long strategy (SPCU).
In total, regulators received about 25 applications for instruments related to SpaceX before the launch. Earlier, the SPCL fund from Defiance saw trading volumes of around $10 million on its first day and gained about 46% before SPCX itself hit the market. Experienced players such as ProShares, Direxion, and Leverage Shares also joined the race.
For comparison: popular single-stock leveraged funds approved by US regulators since 2022 already manage billions. Direxion 2x Tesla (TSLL) has about $6.5 billion under management, while GraniteShares 2x Nvidia (NVDL) has $4.4 billion. These figures clearly show how quickly retail investors are ready to make aggressive bets on individual stocks.
Risks and Strategies of Long-Term Investors
However, the current stock price has noticeably outpaced expected financial results for 2025. Due to daily rebalancing of positions, such funds can generate losses even if SPCX rises over the long term. The risk will increase significantly when more shares hit the market in the coming weeks.
On the other hand, some funds focused on SpaceX are not designed for short-term speculation at all. ARK Invest reported that it now holds SPCX in four active ETFs: ARKX, ARKQ, ARKK, and ARKW. This followed its initial investment through the closed-end ARK Venture Fund in 2023. The asset manager purchased approximately 3.3 million shares for about $444 million during the SPCX debut. By the end of May, SpaceX's share in the ARK Venture Fund had reached 11.38%, becoming the fund's largest position.
My expert assessment: The market is clearly overheated with euphoria, and the current price of SPCX already prices in future successes that have yet to be confirmed. Nevertheless, the emergence of such a large number of leveraged instruments is a powerful signal of market maturity and investors' willingness to make long-term bets on the space industry. The main question now is: can SpaceX live up to these expectations in the coming quarters, or are we witnessing a classic "buy the rumor, sell the news" scenario? In any case, volatility will be extreme.