Shares of space company Intuitive Machines Inc (NASDAQ:LUNR) surged over 5% in Friday's trading session, driven by the company's record quarterly results and major new contracts boosting its outlook for lunar missions.
The Houston-based firm reported a stellar third quarter performance, with revenue soaring 359% year-over-year to $58.5 million. Intuitive Machines closed Q3 with a record cash balance of $89.6 million and a backlog of $316.2 million, fueled by lunar surface delivery missions and a blockbuster $4.82 billion contract award for Near Space Network Services from NASA.
The key win was the Near Space Network Services deal, under which Intuitive Machines will deploy and operate a constellation of five lunar data relay satellites to provide commercial communications services around the Moon. This service is central to supporting both private ventures and NASA's Artemis campaign for sustained human presence on the lunar surface.
Intuitive Machines is also progressing well on developing its lunar terrain vehicle for crewed missions. The company recently delivered a prototype to NASA for testing and unveiled its first fully electric crab-walking vehicle design. It is vying for a potential $116.9 million delivery demonstration mission contract next year.
While operating losses remained elevated at $13.7 million in Q3, driven by continued investments, analysts are optimistic about the company's trajectory. Firms like Cantor Fitzgerald, B. Riley, and Benchmark raised their price targets to a range of $12.50 to $16, citing the strong contract pipeline and prospects for profitability as operations scale.
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