New York — SpaceX shares dropped below their initial offering price Thursday after an engine problem forced the company to cancel a planned Starship test flight.
The stock ended regular trading at $131.11, down 3.08% and below its $135 IPO price for the first time. Shares fell further after the market closed, reaching as low as $124 following the launch cancellation.
SpaceX has now recorded five consecutive losing sessions since going public June 12. The company raised about $86 billion in what was described as the largest initial public offering on record.
Starship had been scheduled to launch from SpaceX’s Starbase complex in South Texas during a 90-minute window beginning at 6:45 p.m. Eastern time.
The countdown was halted as the rocket’s engines began igniting, and SpaceX later said it was abandoning the attempt for the day.
“Some of the engines didn’t start, triggering an automatic launch abort. Now offloading propellant. Next launch attempt hopefully in a few days,” Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said on X.
Musk later said two Raptor engines would be replaced and indicated that another launch attempt would probably be made early next week.
The mission was intended to be Starship’s 13th test flight and the second involving the upgraded V3 configuration. The rocket stands about 400 feet tall.
During the first V3 test in May, Starship lifted off successfully, but several engines on the lower stage failed to restart. The vehicle subsequently fell into the Gulf of Mexico before completing the planned flight. (Source: IANS)
