Investing.com -- Shares of Space Exploration Technologies Corp fell nearly 6.0% in morning trading on Thursday, reaching a session low of $176.60, as profit-taking accelerated into the stock's second consecutive down session following an extraordinary post-IPO surge.

The stock rocketed from $135 to a record $225.64 in just three days. The reversal, which began on Wednesday, was the first decline since the company's public debut last week. The stock on Wednesday, closed down almost 5%, a move that indicates as post-IPO exhaustion, especially after SpaceX briefly overtook Amazon by market capitalization.

Valuation concerns are fueling the selloff with uncertainty has grown after SpaceX announced a $60 billion all-stock acquisition of Anysphere, maker of the AI coding tool Cursor, just days after its IPO—a move that has split institutional opinion about capital allocation. Additionally, an upcoming lock-up expiration in August is also making some investors wary of a possible increase in share supply.

Uncertainty is also growing as attention is seem to be shifting towards SpaceX financials as it disclosed in its IPO filing that it posted a net loss of $4.9 billion in 2025 and another $4.28 billion in the first quarter of 2026, with Starlink remaining its only profitable segment. Within 48 hours of trading, the stock had already surpassed the highest price target published, while Morningstar's fair value estimate remains well below the current price.

Broader market gains are offering no relief for the decline. The S&P 500 is up 0.9%, the Dow Jones up 0.4%, and the Nasdaq up 1.2% on the day, highlighting how sharply SPCX is underperforming its peers. The Federal Reserve kept its benchmark rate at 3.50%–3.75% for the fourth consecutive meeting on June 17, with new Chair Kevin Walsh introducing a reform agenda. While these moves have benefited most growth stocks, they haven't stopped the selling in SpaceX shares.

Seperately, Arete analyst Andrew Beale initiated coverage of SpaceX with a buy rating on Thursday, according to TheFly. Beale highlighted that Starlink’s V3 satellites create a substantial opportunity in suburban broadband. He also noted that SpaceX is tackling complex engineering hurdles in stages as it develops hardware and software for space, connectivity, and AI. Arete set a street-high price target of $401 for SPCX stock, implying a 109% premium over Wednesday’s closing price of $191.82.

NASA, selected SpaceX rival Relativity Space on Wednesday to build a spacecraft for an upcoming Mars mission. The spacecraft will carry NASA instruments designed to measure and image Mars from orbit. The mission, called Aeolus, is scheduled to launch in 2028. The partnership between NASA and Relativity Space represents a public-private collaboration for the Mars exploration effort.