Says The Company's Value Could Grow To $50 Billion

SpaceX could grow into a $50 billion company on the back of its satellite broadband network, according to a team of analysts from Morgan Stanley.

CNBC reports that the information in contained in a report released last Thursday by the investment firm, which indicated that the plan for a space-based broadband network is a "cash cow" for SpaceX. As they work to reduce the cost of launches to as little as $5 million per mission with "flight-proven" boosters, providing internet service will give Elon Musk & Co. enough cash to mount his dreamed-for mission to Mars.

The report equated the ability to re-use rocket boosters to the development of the safety elevator by Elisha Otis in 1854. That let to the vertical development of major cities in the U.S., with every tall building built around an elevator shaft. SpaceX is doing much the same thing with its ability to fly rocket boosters multiple times, according to the analysts.

But the broadband network is the key. SpaceX hopes to have the system operating in two years, and launch humans to Mars in seven.

SpaceX has denied that it is considering an IPO, according to the report, but Morgan Stanley says that it remains a possibility. "It seems reasonable to us to consider whether the company could look to access capital in the public markets," the analysts said, adding that going public would cause public investors to pay more attention not only to SpaceX, but to the industry as a whole.

FMI: Original Report