Smid caps Firefly and BlackSky feature in Barron's 15 stocks for 'new space race'
The Barron's picks come from Morgan Stanley's “Space 60,” a list of publicly traded space companies categorized into seven areas, with high analyst "buy" ratings / Photo: Facebook / Fireflyspace
Barron’s has identified 15 space-related stocks from the so-called Space 60 list compiled by Morgan Stanley as a comprehensive roster of publicly traded companies tied to the sector. Barron’s selected these names as a “good start for investors who want to space growth in their portfolios.” Among them are two smid-cap companies.
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Morgan Stanley unveiled its list of 60 space stocks on Monday, one day after the Artemis II spacecraft carrying four astronauts splashed down off the coast of San Diego.
“Space is back in a big way,” Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas wrote, as quoted by Barron’s. The historic 10-day Artemis II mission around the Moon marked the beginning of a new phase in space exploration – a win not only for NASA, but also for publicly traded space stocks, Barron’s wrote in a separate article.
Morgan Stanley divided the 60 companies that could give investors exposure to the space boom into seven categories: raw materials, alloys, propulsion, electronics, parts, launch systems, and satellite operators. Barron’s then selected 15 stocks that represent a “good start for investors who want to space growth in their portfolios.”
Barron's picks
Firefly Aerospace, a mid-cap peer of Elon Musk's SpaceX, develops launch vehicles and orbital systems, with a market capitalization of $6.2 billion. Firefly says it stands out from competitors due to its ability to organize rapid-response space missions and deliver a satellite to orbit in roughly 24 hours. The stock has five “buy” calls from Wall Street analysts versus three “hold” ratings. Meanwhile, the average target price of $33.57 per share implies 13.5% downside versus the Monday close.
BlackSky Technology, with a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, provides space-based intelligence, AI-driven analytics, and mission solutions. Eight Wall Street analysts rate the shares “buy,” versus one “hold.” At the same time, the average target price of $28.10 per share implies 19% downside.
MP Materials, whose materials are used in space technologies
ATI, which produces titanium, nickel-based, and other alloys
Linde and Air Products, industrial gas producers
Nvidia and Broadcom, chipmakers
Parker-Hannifin and Amphenol, components suppliers
York Space Systems and Rocket Lab, which provide launch and orbital delivery services
Amazon, AST SpaceMobile, and Planet Labs, which are included as companies leveraging space technologies to build new business models
Other Space 60 smid-cap picks
The full list of 60 companies compiled by Morgan Stanley is published by Seeking Alpha. It includes an additional 17 smid-cap stocks, meaning nearly one in three names on the list falls into this segment. They include the following.
Almonty Industries
Materion
Hexcel
Park Aerospace
NewMarket
Qorvo
Mercury Systems
Graham Corporation
Redwire
MDA Space
Intuitive Machines
Gilat Satellite Networks
Viasat
SES
Eutelsat Communications
Iridium Communications
Spire Global
