Westend Capital opts out of SpaceX IPO, citing valuation discipline

WestEnd Capital Management, a technology-focused investment adviser managing roughly $300-400 million in assets, publicly disclosed that it chose not to participate in SpaceX’s record-shattering IPO. The firm’s reasoning was refreshingly old-school in an era of trillion-dollar debuts: the numbers didn’t pencil out. SpaceX listed on Nasdaq under the ticker SPCX on June 12, pricing 555.6 million Class A shares at $135 each. That base raise landed at approximately $75B, with total proceeds climbing to roughly $85.7B after underwriters exercised the full greenshoe option. The implied valuation: $1.77 trillion, making it the largest IPO ever by a wide margin. Why WestEnd said no WestEnd Capital, founded in 2005 and headquartered in Sausalito, California, runs active equity strategies built around one core filter: accelerating earnings growth. The firm hunts for companies whose profit trajectory is steepening, particularly in technology and AI-adjacent sectors. SpaceX, for all its engineering brilliance, apparently didn’t clear that bar at a $1.77 trillion price tag. The firm didn’t disclose whether it received a specific allocation offer. Its strategy update instead pointed toward conti...