Friday, July 17, 2026

SpaceX shares slide below IPO price for first time

Elon Musk-owned SpaceX’s shares stumbled below their initial public offering (IPO) price for the first time on Wednesday, just over a month after the company went public.

• July 16, 2026
SpaceX, Elon Musk
SpaceX and Elon Musk

Elon Musk-owned SpaceX’s shares stumbled below their initial public offering (IPO) price for the first time on Wednesday, just over a month after the company went public.

The process made the South African-born businessman the world’s first trillionaire.

According to Reuters, the share price stumbled as low as $132.28—below the $135 IPO price on Wednesday—before crawling back to close the day’s trading at $135.27. 

According to experts, the fall was a reminder that enthusiasm on Wall Street can wane rapidly after the rockets-to-AI firm raised $85.7 billion and briefly propelled the company to a market value of more than $2.6 trillion, surpassing technology giants such as Microsoft and Amazon.

However, SpaceX’s market value dropped sharply to $1.78 trillion on Wednesday afternoon before slowly recovering. Despite the share price closing 28 cents above its IPO price, it marked a 40 per cent decline from a high of $225.64 reached shortly after the stock started trading. 

Meanwhile, Justus Parmar, chief executive officer of SpaceX investor Fortuna Investments, attributed the shares’ decline to investors liquidating their holdings in large numbers. 

Interactive Brokers’ chief market analyst, Steve Sosnick, stated, “There hasn’t been anything lately to remind people of some of the catalysts for why they bought SpaceX. The fact that a stock has fallen a couple of dollars below its IPO price in itself is not a tragedy, but SpaceX is heavily watched and has an important role in investor psyche.”

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Cynthia Erivo, Yvonne Orji, Wumni Mosaku, Damson Idris, Ayo Edebiri, Uzo Aduba, Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Boyega, David Oyelowo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Diaspora

Beyond Nollywood: List of Nigerian actors who light up Hollywood

Nigerian actors and actresses, whether born in the diaspora or raised abroad, have become household names in Hollywood.

Anthony Ikenwe, Kevin Nwamma

Anti-Corruption

How Nigerians Anthony Ikenwe, Kevin Nwamma pulled off multimillion-pound crypto heist in UK, end in jail

Messrs Ikenwe, Nwamma and one other crook were living lavish lifestyles, buying cars, designer clothes, and Rolexes, and going on numerous luxury holidays.

Released Oyo hostages

Education

UNICEF praises Nigerian government for rescuing kidnapped Oriire schoolchildren

UNICEF has commended the Nigerian government for rescuing 39 abducted schoolchildren and five teachers in Oyo state.

Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni

States

Yobe governor to spend N73 billion on agric empowerment, other projects

The Yobe government has approved N73.3 billion for various projects and services in the state.

Collage of TVs

Showbiz

Five things Nigerians need to know about FG’s FreeTV

The federal government has launched FreeTV, a subscription-free digital television platform designed to expand access to television services for millions of Nigerians.

Du Plessis, Usman

Hot news Home top

South Africa’s Du Plessis, Nigeria’s Usman face off in UFC showdown in Oklahoma

The middleweight main event takes place at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Fight Night in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.