SpaceX Shares Climb 8% as Morgan Stanley Calls Stock Cheap Ahead of Starship Test

SpaceX stock rose nearly 8% on Monday after Morgan Stanley analysts called the shares "cheap" and recommended buying ahead of the next Starship test flight. The stock closed at $171.09, its highest level since mid-June. The firm set a $300 price target, implying roughly 75% upside from Monday's close. A Sunday note cited "future AI product releases, Starship progress, and additional neocloud contracts," according to CNBC. Analysts said successfully catching the Starship upper stage in an upcoming flight would be "the biggest positive catalyst since the IPO." Prior test flights ended with the upper stage splashing into the ocean, leaving reusability undemonstrated. They also flagged SpaceX's third-quarter earnings, expected in late October. SpaceX went public June 12 at $135 per share, hit a record $201.80 close on June 16, then fell more than 30% before the first post-IPO unlock. Shares have recovered about 58% from an early-August trough. Forbes put Musk's fortune at $1.03 trillion after Monday's gains.