US Markets
Friday, February 23rd, 2024 4:50 pm EDT
Key Points
- Intuitive Machines’ successful moon landing with its cargo lander “Odysseus” led to a significant surge in the company’s stock value, marking it as the first privately developed spacecraft to land on the lunar surface and the first U.S. spacecraft to softly land on the moon in over 50 years.
- Following the successful landing, Intuitive Machines confirmed the operational status of the IM-1 mission lander, with flight controllers communicating and commanding the vehicle to download science data while charging its solar panels.
- The company’s successful mission not only solidifies its position in the burgeoning space industry but also secures future contracts, including two more CLPS contracts for future lander missions and a significant stake in a five-year $719 million contract to provide engineering services to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, adding potential revenue streams and bolstering its market position.
Intuitive Machines saw a significant surge in its stock value following the successful landing of its moon lander, “Odysseus,” marking the first privately developed spacecraft to land on the lunar surface and the first U.S. spacecraft to softly land on the moon in over five decades. The company, based in Houston, Texas, confirmed the successful landing of the IM-1 mission lander, with its CTO and mission director, Tim Crain, expressing satisfaction from the company’s mission control. The stock initially soared by 40% from its previous close of $8.28 a share before stabilizing amid heavy trading volume, attributing to a market valuation of approximately $1 billion. The excitement surrounding the IM-1 mission had been building up over the past month, reflected in the stock’s rally, especially noteworthy as Intuitive Machines had gone public via a SPAC just a year prior, experiencing a steady decline to all-time lows near $2 in January. The unprecedented nature of the event led Wall Street analysts to predict volatile momentum trading, with Cantor Fitzgerald’s Andres Sheppard highlighting the novelty for both investors and analysts. Following the successful landing, the company confirmed Odysseus’s operational status, communicating with flight controllers and beginning to download science data while charging its solar panels. Furthermore, Intuitive Machines disclosed that the Odysseus lander carried 12 government and commercial payloads, six of which are for NASA under an $118 million contract through the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. This successful mission has bolstered Intuitive Machines’ position, securing two more CLPS contracts for future lander missions, with IM-2 slated for launch as early as the second half of the current year. Additionally, the company has a significant stake in a five-year $719 million contract to provide engineering services to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, with analysts estimating the contract’s value at approximately $11 million per month in revenue for Intuitive Machines. The successful mission not only marks a significant achievement in space exploration but also solidifies Intuitive Machines’ foothold in the burgeoning space industry.
For the full original article on CNBC, please click here: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/23/intuitive-machines-stock-lunr-odysseus-moon-landing.html
