Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. broadly missed estimates for the first quarter even as the space-tourism company plans commercial flights for later this year.
The company reported first-quarter revenue of $0.39 million, much less than the $1.37 million analysts had expected. It also lost an adjusted 57 cents per share, more than the 52 cents-per-share loss Wall Street analysts had expected.
The results on Tuesday came a day after Virgin Galactic announced the crew for its first full passenger flight in nearly two years, set for the end of May. Virgin Galactic expects to begin commercial spaceflights in June with its first mission, Galactic 01, for the Italian Air Force.
Shares fell 4.65% in extended trading in New York. Virgin Galactic stock climbed 18% this year as of the close of regular trading Tuesday.
“We plan to follow Galactic 01 with both civilian astronaut and research customers flying on regular intervals thereafter,” Chief Executive Officer Michael Colglazier said during a call with analysts.
The company said it had $874 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities as of March 31. That’s down from $980 million the previous quarter and $1.22 billion this time last year. It attributed its rise in expenses to developments and enhancements of its fleet of spaceplanes. Investors had been looking for guidance on Virgin Galactic’s planned commercial flights, which offer passengers a trip to the edge of space at nearly half a million dollars per seat.
Virgin Galactic’s May flight would mark the first powered trip of the company’s VSS Unity spaceplane since July 2021, when billionaire founder Richard Branson took his first voyage to the edge of space. Months after Branson’s flight, Virgin Galactic announced a “planned vehicle enhancement and modification period” and grounded its vehicles for upgrades.
It had delayed its target date for returning to flight. In February, Virgin Galactic announced that the enhancement period had ended at the end of 2022, with the majority of the upgrades focused on VMS Eve, the twin fuselage carrier plane used to deploy VSS Unity at altitude.
In April, VSS Unity successfully flew on a glide flight, without igniting its engine, from the company’s New Mexico spaceport.
The May flight will have a six-person crew, including Virgin Galactic pilots Mike Massucci and CJ Sturckow, both of whom have piloted Unity to the edge of space before. The four passengers are all company employees, including three new flyers: Jamila Gilbert, Christopher Huie and Luke Mays. Joining them will be Beth Moses, Virgin Galactic’s chief astronaut instructor who became the first woman to fly to space on a commercial spacecraft back in 2019.
The company has said it plans to begin commercial operations of its new Delta class spaceplane in 2026, with each ship costing between $50 million and $60 million to make, Chief Financial Officer Doug Ahrens said. The company expects to bring in $2.7 million in revenue per trip with tickets priced at $450,000, Ahrens said, earning back the cost of each vehicle every six months if it can keep a weekly flight cadence.
Virgin Galactic reopened ticket sales last year for interested customers at the $450,000 price tag. The cost marks a substantial increase from the $250,000 price point that early Virgin Galactic customers paid. Virgin Galactic will reopen ticket sales to passengers after it starts flying, Colglazier said.
