SpaceX reported a 92% year-on-year increase in revenue in its first quarterly earnings report as a publicly traded company, highlighting strong demand for its satellite internet and launch services. The company generated $6.93 billion in revenue during the second quarter, driven primarily by continued expansion of the Starlink business and commercial space missions.
Despite the impressive top-line performance, SpaceX shares fell in after-hours trading as investors focused on rising losses, heavy capital expenditure, and the company's ambitious long-term investment plans.
Starlink remained SpaceX's largest revenue generator during the quarter, contributing approximately $4.3 billion, or more than half of total revenue. The satellite internet business doubled its subscriber base to around 12 million users, supported by expansion into enterprise, aviation, and government markets.
The company has also signed connectivity partnerships with major airlines, including American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Iberia, and Aer Lingus, strengthening its position in the global in-flight internet market. Meanwhile, SpaceX's launch business generated $962 million in revenue, benefiting from increased commercial and government missions.
During a call with analysts Tuesday afternoon, CEO Elon Musk and COO Gwynne Shotwell both sought to reassure investors that SpaceX is successfully evolving from being primarily a rocket company into a conglomerate with AI at its core.
"On the government side, we won more than $6 billion in US contracts in Q2, supporting major Space Force programs that offer our nation mission-critical communications and sensing capabilities, and we see even more room for growth in this sector in this coming year," Shotwell said.
While revenue exceeded expectations, investors remained cautious about SpaceX's aggressive spending strategy. Capital expenditure climbed to nearly $18.4 billion during the quarter as the company continued investing in next-generation satellites, data centre infrastructure, Starship development, and advanced computing capabilities.
Although the quarterly net loss narrowed to $541 million, analysts noted that profitability remains under pressure because of the scale of these investments. The market reaction suggests investors are looking for clearer evidence that rapid revenue growth will eventually translate into sustainable earnings.
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Despite the stock prices going down, management is quite positive about the company's long-term growth outlooks. Additionally, the company continues to grow its computing capabilities by signing new deals with enterprises such as Anthropic and Google. Moreover, investment into the Starship program should help decrease the cost of launches and further deployment of satellites.
The initiatives seem promising for improving competitiveness, but investors will need to see future results related to income and capital spending, as well as cash flow figures, before regaining confidence. Since lock-up expires on Thursday, the level of volatility can still stay high for a bit.