SpaceX Sales Surge 92%, but Shares Fall After-Hours on AI Spending

[Financial News, New York = Reporter Lee Byung-chul]Elon Musk's space company SpaceX posted revenue that beat market expectations in its first quarterly earnings report since going public. However, investor concerns grew as the company sharply increased capital spending for AI infrastructure, sending the stock lower in after-hours trading. Starlink's strong performance drove the results, but the space launch and AI businesses remained in the red, adding to the investment burden.
SpaceX said on the 4th (local time) that revenue for the second quarter of this year came in at $7.81 billion, far above the market forecast of $6.93 billion. Revenue jumped 92% from $4.1 billion a year earlier. The increase was driven by growth in Starlink subscribers and expansion in AI-related businesses.
The company reported an earnings per share loss of 9 cents. Because of accounting differences, it is difficult to compare directly with market estimates, but the loss was smaller than expected.
Still, the market focused more on the sharp rise in capital expenditures than on the strong results. As investment in AI infrastructure accelerated, the stock fell in after-hours trading.
Since its IPO in June, SpaceX shares have fallen about 16% from the offering price at the close, weighed down by concerns over heavier AI investment and a broader pullback in growth stocks.
By business segment, the Connectivity division, including Starlink, led the results. Revenue reached $4.29 billion, topping the market estimate of $3.83 billion, while operating profit came to $1.66 billion, making it the company's only profitable business unit.
Starlink had 12 million subscribers, double the number from a year earlier and up 17% from the previous quarter.
Average revenue per user, or ARPU, was $66, unchanged from the previous quarter but well below $85 a year earlier. The decline appears to reflect lower service prices aimed at attracting more subscribers.
By contrast, the Space segment posted an operating loss of $542 million despite revenue of $962 million. The AI division also recorded an operating loss of $1.26 billion on revenue of $2.56 billion.
In the end, the cash generated by Starlink appears to continue funding investment in the space launch and AI businesses.



[email protected] Reporter Lee Byung-chul Reporter