By Al Root
Investors keep getting little tidbits about the SpaceX IPO ahead of Elon Musk's rocket and AI company making its S-1 registration statement public.
Three recent tidbits: SpaceX split its stock. Musk's pay will look very Tesla-like, which will make him much richer if he hits all his incentives. And it seems as if Musk will never run into a Tesla-like problem that has nettled him for years ever again.
First, the split. Bloomberg reported Friday that SpaceX had split its stock five-to-one ahead of its massive IPO, which could raise $75 billion and value the company at up to $2 trillion.
SpaceX didn't respond to a request for comment about the split.
Investors like stock splits, believing they signal management's confidence in the future. Stock splits, however, are more common after companies have gone public.
The split makes the private market price of SpaceX stock close to $100. The IPO price might be closer to $160. The absolute level of a stock doesn't typically matter all that much, but a lower price might help smaller retail investors build positions. Retail shareholders are expected to be important for SpaceX. They hold a lot of Tesla shares.
Next, there is the issue of Musk's pay. It's looking very Tesla-like, with no salary and huge, lucrative stock awards if Musk hits incredible goals. Tesla shareholders approved a plan to award Musk more than 420 million shares if he increases Tesla's market value to $8.5 trillion. That stock would be worth roughly $1 trillion if Musk is successful.
(Musk's wealth is already roughly $800 billion, according to Barron's math.)
Musk will get up to 260 million shares of SpaceX if he does things such as increasing SpaceX's market value to $7.5 trillion, establishing a Mars colony, and putting a lot of AI computing in space.
Those numbers are likely pre-split. SpaceX didn't respond to a request for comment about the award.
That stock would have a market value of, perhaps, $500 billion if it all happens, taking his total SpaceX stake to an estimated $3.5 trillion.
Musk's SpaceX stock will be supervoting, which will easily give him majority control of the company. He has long lamented his relative lack of control at Tesla, arguing in years past that he needed 25% voting control, in part, to avoid ever being pushed out.
The odds of shareholders pushing out Musk are vanishingly small. They have consistently sided with him and approved massive pay deals.
More details about the award and governance are due any day now. SpaceX filed its paperwork confidentially, as many companies do, with the SEC in late March or early April. Investors expect full access this week, with an IPO roadshow beginning in early June. The IPO process should wrap up before July.
Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 17, 2026 10:49 ET (14:49 GMT)
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