If you think that Tesla was too strong on investor protections and would like to have your say as a co-owner of the company diluted into irrelevance, SpaceX is the (meme) stock for you:
"SpaceX has adopted corporate governance policies that will erode typical shareholder protections in unprecedented ways, giving founder Elon Musk virtually unchecked executive authority when the rocket maker goes public later this year."
"Excerpts of SpaceX's IPO registration statement reviewed by Reuters show the company is combining supervoting shares, mandatory arbitration, stricter rules on shareholder proposals and Texas corporate law to give Musk and other insiders broad control. At the same time, it sharply limits investors' ability to challenge management, sue in court and force votes on governance issues."[1]
I've been pretty heavily invested in the space sector (Rocket Lab gains will basically pay for my retirement)* , and there was a time where I would be itching to grab a piece of SpaceX. However, since then (2020), we've gotten a really good look at how Musk runs companies, and you'd be daft to purchase shares before all the insiders cash out (SPCX has an unusually short lockup period[2]) and institutions are already declaring the company massively overvalued at these IPO prices[3].
I'm a fan of the space sector, but please find a company with a realistic and sane management team and a competitive moat bigger than Starlink [4, 5, 6]. If there's anything Musk excels at, it's squandering a good first mover advantage.[7]
*(Disclosure: I hold shares in RKLB, ASTS, BSKY, PL, and LUNR.)
I bailed on TSLA (with 22x profits) when Elon started showing his madness around the cave diver rescuing those Thai kids. I could have made a lot more $$$ had I stuck around, but I feel like I made the right call.
Especially since Peter Beck (Rocket Lab's CEO) made up for that shortfall (after a few dicey years post-SPAC), and is actually a much cooler fellow than Temu Tony Stark. A self-taught engineer, he actually built his stuff instead of outsourcing the early work of others and claiming the work as his own.[1]
"The Elon Musk-owned SpaceX — which recently filed for what could be the biggest initial public offering ever — already has contracts with the Space Force to develop other parts of the Golden Dome. Similar to Israel’s Iron Dome, Trump’s pricey defense system would identify and take down missiles and other airborne targets. SpaceX is set to develop prototypes for space-based interceptors for the Golden Dome and also won a $2.29 billion contract to develop its data network."[1]
To be fair, there's a lot of defense money sloshing around all the space companies. Rocket Lab's Electron platform (their primary launch vehicle until Neutron is ready) is also a platform for hypersonic missile testing.[2]
(Also, I cannot claim credit for "Temu Tony Stark" - I borrowed that from someone else, who likely borrowed it as well.)
Thanks for the history lesson Steve, fascinating and disgusting all in a few paragraphs. The robber barons of old sound strangely like the robber barons of today. I guess some folks never learn? History is such a powerful teacher and yet, ignored in the quest to get rich.
Perhaps there is nothing more troubling to me with the return of trump, corruption has become in vogue, rather than to be held in disdain. Norms have been shattered by the reality that getting rich is all that matters.
Fortunately the S&P and Dow Industrial decided to not change their rules to allow SpaceX on their indices, which will save a lot of people from unwillingly taking part in the IPO.
My understanding of the Google deal is that it starts October 2026, and can be cancelled by either party with 90 days notice starting Dec 31 2026. Sounds kinda sus to me.
Brilliant and insightful article. I’ve seen how Elon ran/runs X.
I don’t need to see anymore. 😬🤣
And I loved the history part of this article. I thought I knew some of that stuff, but some of the details was riveting. I clearly need to read another book or two on age.
Currently working my way through the three-volume trilogy of the Civil War by Shelby Foote. 👊❤️🫡
Foote's history is one the best. Civil War history is so rich, 100 books could not cover it. My friend Stephen Hoy wrote "Camp Oglethorpe: Macon’s Unknown Civil War". Stephen got deep in the details, correcting long-held records that were cited by historians (citing each other) by digging up the source material. Marvelous research. And it's the only book where I'm mentioned in the acknowledgements. It's weird picking up a book at the bookstore and seeing your name in print.
Here's some of the list of things I don't know anything about: Bizarre rites of the Catholic Church. What happens in a Mason lodge. Umm. History of the crown of England (other than very basic Guy Fawkes stuff). But I'm a mile wide and an inch deep on many other things.
If you think that Tesla was too strong on investor protections and would like to have your say as a co-owner of the company diluted into irrelevance, SpaceX is the (meme) stock for you:
"SpaceX has adopted corporate governance policies that will erode typical shareholder protections in unprecedented ways, giving founder Elon Musk virtually unchecked executive authority when the rocket maker goes public later this year."
"Excerpts of SpaceX's IPO registration statement reviewed by Reuters show the company is combining supervoting shares, mandatory arbitration, stricter rules on shareholder proposals and Texas corporate law to give Musk and other insiders broad control. At the same time, it sharply limits investors' ability to challenge management, sue in court and force votes on governance issues."[1]
I've been pretty heavily invested in the space sector (Rocket Lab gains will basically pay for my retirement)* , and there was a time where I would be itching to grab a piece of SpaceX. However, since then (2020), we've gotten a really good look at how Musk runs companies, and you'd be daft to purchase shares before all the insiders cash out (SPCX has an unusually short lockup period[2]) and institutions are already declaring the company massively overvalued at these IPO prices[3].
I'm a fan of the space sector, but please find a company with a realistic and sane management team and a competitive moat bigger than Starlink [4, 5, 6]. If there's anything Musk excels at, it's squandering a good first mover advantage.[7]
*(Disclosure: I hold shares in RKLB, ASTS, BSKY, PL, and LUNR.)
[1] https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/spacex-ipo-gives-musk-sweeping-power-curbs-shareholder-rights-2026-05-06/
[2] https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/06/08/spacex-ipo-leave-retail-investors-holding-the-bag/
[3] https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/why-we-think-spacex-ipo-is-overvalued
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_Leo
[5] https://spacenews.com/fcc-clears-ast-spacemobile-constellation-as-launch-setback-clouds-ramp-up/
[6] https://spacenews.com/qianfan-constellation-deployment-hits-200-satellites-with-long-march-8-and-6a-launches/
[7] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj9rjwpvmpzo
They display the corruption right in the open.
Also I made a lot of money on TSLA…by getting out when it hit max valuation.
I bailed on TSLA (with 22x profits) when Elon started showing his madness around the cave diver rescuing those Thai kids. I could have made a lot more $$$ had I stuck around, but I feel like I made the right call.
Especially since Peter Beck (Rocket Lab's CEO) made up for that shortfall (after a few dicey years post-SPAC), and is actually a much cooler fellow than Temu Tony Stark. A self-taught engineer, he actually built his stuff instead of outsourcing the early work of others and claiming the work as his own.[1]
[1] https://www.spacecapital.com/blogs/rocket-lab-the-discipline-of-audacity-the-art-of-precision
"Temu Tony Stark" - that's funny. It would be very dangerous if Elon Musk ever started making weapons systems.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news:
"The Elon Musk-owned SpaceX — which recently filed for what could be the biggest initial public offering ever — already has contracts with the Space Force to develop other parts of the Golden Dome. Similar to Israel’s Iron Dome, Trump’s pricey defense system would identify and take down missiles and other airborne targets. SpaceX is set to develop prototypes for space-based interceptors for the Golden Dome and also won a $2.29 billion contract to develop its data network."[1]
To be fair, there's a lot of defense money sloshing around all the space companies. Rocket Lab's Electron platform (their primary launch vehicle until Neutron is ready) is also a platform for hypersonic missile testing.[2]
(Also, I cannot claim credit for "Temu Tony Stark" - I borrowed that from someone else, who likely borrowed it as well.)
[1] https://www.theverge.com/science/940207/spacex-golden-dome-satellite-contract
[2] https://rocketlabcorp.com/launch/haste/
Until now, all I knew about Salmon P. Chase is that he was once Secretary of the Treasury and that his likeness was on the $10,000 bill.
Great advice on cautious investing. Most non-wealthy people should shy away from large stakes in IPOs.
Thanks for the history lesson Steve, fascinating and disgusting all in a few paragraphs. The robber barons of old sound strangely like the robber barons of today. I guess some folks never learn? History is such a powerful teacher and yet, ignored in the quest to get rich.
Perhaps there is nothing more troubling to me with the return of trump, corruption has become in vogue, rather than to be held in disdain. Norms have been shattered by the reality that getting rich is all that matters.
So sad.
Fortunately the S&P and Dow Industrial decided to not change their rules to allow SpaceX on their indices, which will save a lot of people from unwillingly taking part in the IPO.
My understanding of the Google deal is that it starts October 2026, and can be cancelled by either party with 90 days notice starting Dec 31 2026. Sounds kinda sus to me.
Everything about this IPO is sus.
Brilliant and insightful article. I’ve seen how Elon ran/runs X.
I don’t need to see anymore. 😬🤣
And I loved the history part of this article. I thought I knew some of that stuff, but some of the details was riveting. I clearly need to read another book or two on age.
Currently working my way through the three-volume trilogy of the Civil War by Shelby Foote. 👊❤️🫡
Foote's history is one the best. Civil War history is so rich, 100 books could not cover it. My friend Stephen Hoy wrote "Camp Oglethorpe: Macon’s Unknown Civil War". Stephen got deep in the details, correcting long-held records that were cited by historians (citing each other) by digging up the source material. Marvelous research. And it's the only book where I'm mentioned in the acknowledgements. It's weird picking up a book at the bookstore and seeing your name in print.
https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2305&context=glq
😳😳🤯🤯
Exactly what subjects are you not informed on?! 🤣🤣
Here's some of the list of things I don't know anything about: Bizarre rites of the Catholic Church. What happens in a Mason lodge. Umm. History of the crown of England (other than very basic Guy Fawkes stuff). But I'm a mile wide and an inch deep on many other things.