Amid Spacecraft Overhauls, Delays, Price Dips Below 2019 Introduction

Space tourism company Virgin Galactic has seen better days in its never ending roller coaster ride on Wall Street.

Its stock price dipped briefly below its $11.75 start price from October 2019, seeing $11.33 for a brief time before rebounding to hover around $12.00 throughout the early afternoon. The price was upheld as a rousing deal for believers in the company, some of whom recall the high of $62.80 a share in the February 2021 frenzy. 

Virgin Galactic has had a string of bad news for investors, pushing back commercial space service time and again, still in the throes of flight testing and one-off company flights despite initial promises to begin passenger service in 2020. Many investors understand, however, that the timetables involved require considerable flexibility - Virgin is quite literally writing the book from scratch, designing their aircraft, their spacecraft, and their procedures in-house. The commercial space race offers no turnkey solutions yet. 

The price drop followed the usual fluctuation of the stock amid a bumpy aerospace backdrop. Quarter 4 2021 reports are expected to be released at the end of February, and few expect much excellent news. The company has continued to operate at a loss, and founder Richard Branson has sold off $300 million of his stock last summer to the tune of $25.75-$34.39 a share. The move saw more than 10 million of his shares change hands, cutting his holdings down a bit but still leaving him the majority shareholder. A statement from the Virgin Group described the move as necessary to support his other leisure and travel businesses hammered by the pandemic. 

FMI: www.virgingalactic.com