SpaceX posts surprise Q3 earnings

Bitcoin valuation and unrealized gains rise sharply

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, speaks at an indoor event related to the presidential inauguration parade in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20, 2025 (local time). [AP]
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, speaks at an indoor event related to the presidential inauguration parade in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20, 2025 (local time). [AP]

SpaceX, the space company led by Elon Musk, posted a surprise third-quarter net profit of $4.4 billion, swinging to profitability, while its bitcoin holdings were valued at $1.57 billion as of the end of September.

According to virtual asset media outlets including Bitcoin.com News and CoinPost, SpaceX's consolidated financial statements in its third-quarter earnings report, released Tuesday, list the value of its "digital assets" at $1.57 billion as of Sept. 30.

[Reuters]
[Reuters]

That figure is up $475 million from $1.1 billion at the end of the second quarter in June, though it remains $64 million below the $1.64 billion recorded at the end of last year.

The company did not explicitly mention bitcoin or disclose the number of coins it holds in the earnings report.

However, Bitcoin.com News and other outlets noted that earlier filings showed SpaceX acquired 18,712 bitcoin for approximately $661 million. Based on that cost basis, the outlets estimated the company's unrealized gain on its bitcoin holdings stood at $912 million as of the end of September.

If SpaceX and Tesla were to merge, the combined entity would hold a total of 30,221 bitcoin — adding Tesla's 11,509 BTC as of the end of June to SpaceX's holdings.

According to Bitcoin Treasuries, which tracks bitcoin holdings among publicly listed companies worldwide, SpaceX ranks seventh and Tesla ranks 11th among corporate bitcoin holders. A merger would push the combined ranking to sixth, it is expected.

Interest in a potential merger has grown after Reuters reported that Musk called the idea "a good idea" when asked about combining the two companies.

Meanwhile, SpaceX posted third-quarter sales of $14.57 billion, up 161 percent from the same period last year and well above the Wall Street consensus estimate of $12.86 billion. Operating profit came in at $2.79 billion, while net profit for the period reached $4.4 billion, marking a sharp swing to profitability compared with both the year-earlier period and the previous quarter.


jshan@heraldcorp.com