Space stocks rose on Friday — with the exception of Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc, which ended the session down 1%.
The space tourism company, which initially led a broader decline in space stocks, extended its losing streak to two days. virgin Galactic SPCE,
It has fallen five of the past six days.
However, shares of Intuitive Machines Inc. LUNR,
Which is preparing to launch the first commercial vehicle on the surface of the moon, rose to end the session up 1.6%. The stock fell 0.8% during Thursday's session.
Related: Virgin Galactic stock rose after Truist upgrade
Intuitive Machines plans to send the Nova-C lunar lander to the moon aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as early as next month. The launch of the IM-1 mission is targeting a multi-day launch window that opens no earlier than mid-February, given the monthly lunar dimming period, the company said in a recent update. Nova-C will land near the Moon's south pole, where the right lighting conditions are available for only a few days each month.
The S&P 500 SPX ended Friday's session up 1.2%. Shares of Momentus Inc. MNTS,
Which provides transportation and services via satellite, rose to end Friday's session up by 5.9%, ending a four-day losing streak. The stock also recorded the largest percentage increase in one day since December 26, 2023, when it rose by 6.9%. Shares of Earth imaging company Planet Labs PBC PL,
It ended the session up 1.9%, ending a three-day unprofitable streak during which shares closed unchanged on Thursday. UFO exchange-traded fund Procure Space fell 2.2% on Friday.
Private space company Astrobotic Technology on Thursday ended its tumultuous mission to place a lander on the lunar surface when the Peregrine spacecraft completed its controlled reentry into Earth's atmosphere. It is believed that the spacecraft burned up over the South Pacific Ocean. A propellant leak led to the failure of the lunar landing mission, although Astrobotic was able to operate all active Peregrine payloads and collect data from them.
Related: This space inventory is rising as the next commercial lunar landing mission approaches
Commercial lunar landings are important exploration missions before American astronauts return to the Moon as part of NASA's Artemis program. Earlier this month, NASA said it is now targeting September 2025 for the first crewed Artemis mission around the moon, and September 2026 for an Artemis mission to land astronauts near the moon's south pole.
Other countries are also setting their sights on the moon. Japan's Lunar Exploration Intelligent Lander, or SLIM, on Friday made a soft landing on the lunar surface, the Associated Press reported.
Virgin Galactic shares are down 63% over the past 52 weeks, while Intuitive Machines shares are down 74%. Momentus shares fell 98.3% during that period, while Planet Labs shares fell 57.2%. The S&P 500 is up 21.8% over the past 52 weeks.
