Alphabet's strategic investment in SpaceX has delivered exceptional returns, with the company's stake valued at approximately $94.2 billion as of June 30, 2026, based on a share price of $170.86. This represents a remarkable 100-fold increase from Alphabet's original investment of about $900 million made in 2015. The value became visible in regulatory filings following SpaceX's blockbuster public listing, with Alphabet reporting ownership of 551.2 million SpaceX shares. This stake now represents 95% of Alphabet's investment portfolio, highlighting the company's willingness to make long-term, high-risk bets beyond its core ad and cloud businesses. As per Reuters, Alphabet has emerged as the largest single institutional holder of SpaceX following the company's $86 billion IPO in June, with the filings providing a rare benchmark for comparing the value of early investments in the space technology company.
As reported by Reuters, SpaceX shares closed at $141.29 on Thursday, representing a 4.7% premium above the IPO price of $135 but still 17.3% below the June 30 closing price of $170.86. Using Thursday's closing price, Alphabet's disclosed position would be worth about $77.9 billion, still roughly 86.5 times the original investment. SpaceX began trading publicly on June 12 at $135 per share and closed at $146.15, representing an 8.3% premium above its IPO price, though it was about 14% below its June 30 level. Despite SpaceX's stock volatility and the illiquid nature of this gain, Alphabet's core operations continue to grow strongly, with 24% revenue growth and a below-sector P/E ratio, making the SpaceX windfall a valuable bonus for patient investors.
According to Reuters analysis of latest 13F filings, Alphabet has emerged as the largest single institutional holder of SpaceX following the company's $86 billion IPO in June. Fidelity Investments ranked second with 302.6 million shares, followed by Gigafund Management with 171.8 million, Baillie Gifford with 51.4 million, and BlackRock with 51.0 million shares. Together, these five investors account for nearly three quarters of the reported institutional ownership in SpaceX, underscoring the concentration of large positions among a small group of investors. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund disclosed a position of 154.1 million shares, worth $26.3 billion at the end of June, while Hancock Prospecting controlled by Australian mining mogul Gina Rinehart held 8 million shares, worth $1.4 billion. SpaceX disclosed in a regulatory filing that Elon Musk held a 48.4% stake in the company, while the filings offer an incomplete view of the broader shareholder base due to complex pre-IPO holdings and different lockup arrangements.
As reported by Reuters, SpaceX shares have remained highly active among Interactive Brokers customers since the listing. However, retail investors became net sellers for the first time since the listing on Friday, with Vanda Research estimating net sales of $4.5 million. Despite this, SpaceX shares have climbed 30% since August 5, underscoring the intense investor interest surrounding the newly listed company. The contrasting performance highlights the market's appetite for space technology investments versus traditional tech stocks. Market strategist Steve Sosnick from Interactive Brokers noted that the 13F data does not indicate whether investors are subject to lockups or how they may be planning to realize profits on positions established before the IPO. Sosnick added that SpaceX remains one of the most actively traded stocks among customers at Interactive Brokers, receiving a "fresh jolt of buying last week when market fears about what would happen when the first lockup expiry arrived proved to be unfounded."
