SpaceX stock is about to join this growing constellation of public companies building a space-based economy

Investors are salivating for Space X’s blockbuster IPO in a few weeks, but there are already a number of publicly traded stocks with exposure to different parts of the expanding space economy. The space sector has come into renewed focus as the U.S. and China race to the moon. Meanwhile, Space X also seeks to build a colony on Mars, and the Trump administration plans to create the “Golden Dome” space-based missile shield. In addition to rocket companies that launch payloads into orbit, others in the sector develop satellites and vehicles or provide space-based services like communications and imagery. Some are recent upstarts, while others have been mainstays for decades. For its part, Elon Musk started SpaceX in 2002 to challenge the dominance of Boeing and Lockheed Martin. By pioneering the development of reusable boosters that can land autonomously, the company slashed launch costs and ramped up its launch cadence—suddenly making low Earth orbit more accessible to a broad range of customers. Led by the Falcon rocket and Falcon Heavy for bigger payloads, SpaceX claimed more than 80% of global rocket launches last year and has more than 10,000 Starlink satellites in orbit. But despite its emergence as the new industry leader, there’s room in the growing space economy for other companies. Rocket Lab develops small and medium-class rockets, spacecraft and components while also providing launch services, satellite manufacturing, and on-orbit management. Rocket Lab headquarters located in Mt Wellington, Auckland, on November 19, 2019. Dean Purcell/The New Zealand Herald via Getty Images Virgin Galactic is a space travel company serving private individuals, researchers, and government agencies via spacecraft it has developed. AST SpaceMobile plans to build a global cellular broadband network in space and is developing a constellation of BlueBird satellites. Voyager Technologies is a space and defense supplier making a variety of systems, such as pr