Wall Street Pushes SpaceX Targets Higher After Earnings Beat
Analysts sharply increased their expectations for the stock following a strong quarterly report and guidance that exceeded forecasts.
By Elijah Fitzgerald ·
Wall Street responded with a wave of optimism after SpaceX posted third-quarter results that surpassed forecasts. The company reported revenue of $14.6 billion, a 161 percent rise from the same period last year, against consensus estimates of roughly $12.7 billion. The firm also turned a profit, recording $4.4 billion after a loss in the prior year. Adjusted EBITDA reached $8.8 billion.
The reaction was swift. Shares closed at $147.79 on October 20. By early premarket trading on October 21, the stock had climbed about 8 percent. The jump came as investors weighed the strong financials alongside a new batch of analyst projections.
Several major firms moved their price targets higher. JPMorgan lifted its projection to $500 from $240. Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $345 from $246. Barclays moved to $300 from $254, while Morgan Stanley held a $300 target. Citi increased its figure to $240 from $200, and UBS raised it to $230 from $210. Other firms followed suit, including Wells Fargo and Clear Street. Analysts pointed to the strong quarterly report, AI compute expansion, Starlink progress, and Starship milestones.
The earnings call provided further momentum. CEO Elon Musk and CFO Bret Johnsen outlined revenue guidance of $33 billion to $37 billion for the first quarter of 2027. That figure was well above the roughly $22 billion analysts had modeled. They also detailed plans to spend $35 billion to $40 billion on capital expenditures in the fourth quarter, focused on AI compute infrastructure at sites like Memphis and Southaven.
The company’s Super Intelligence division brought in $7.6 billion, becoming its largest revenue source with growth of nearly 830 percent. The Connectivity segment added $5.2 billion, supported by subscriber growth that pushed the Starlink user base to 13.6 million. Management set a target of 2.5 to 3 gigawatts of compute capacity by year-end, with paths to 13 gigawatts or more by the end of 2027. Musk described demand from hyperscalers as relentless, with payback periods under a year.
Other highlights included Starship’s recent orbital success and V3 satellite deployment. The call also covered Starlink enterprise momentum, Grok Bot adoption, spectrum expansion, and the formation of special committees to explore a possible combination with Tesla. While average targets have moved higher to reflect greater conviction in the company’s trajectory, elevated spending remains a point of focus.
