At a glance
- The company sold only about 5% of its shares in its June 12 IPO, against roughly 20% for a typical offering.
- An analysis by NISA Investment Advisors found shares in 543 common stock IPOs from January 2019 to December 2025 trailed the S&P 500 by an average of 20.4% from first-day close to lockup release.
- Selling low-basis shares cuts concentration at once but can produce a large capital gains bill, SpiderRock’s Eric Metz said.
Up to 1.3 billion SpaceX insider shares become sellable after third-quarter earnings, with about 800 million more unlocking Dec. 8 and a larger expiration next year, InvestmentNews reported. The company sold only about 5% of its shares in its June 12 IPO, against roughly 20% for a typical offering.
An analysis by NISA Investment Advisors found shares in 543 common stock IPOs from January 2019 to December 2025 trailed the S&P 500 by an average of 20.4% from first-day close to lockup release. Elon Musk becomes eligible to sell on June 12, 2027.
Selling low-basis shares cuts concentration at once but can produce a large capital gains bill, SpiderRock’s Eric Metz said. SpiderRock, part of BlackRock, uses an option overlay to change a portfolio’s risk without an upfront sale. Because SpaceX joined the Nasdaq-100 immediately after listing, clients holding the stock directly also own it through index funds, which widens the overlap a review has to cover.
SpaceX floated 5% of its shares, not the usual 20%
Shares sold in the IPO as a share of the company; SpaceX's June 12 listing vs. a typical offering
SpaceX IPO
5%
Typical IPO
20%
The thin float leaves up to 1.3 billion insider shares to unlock.
Reported by the RIA desk from InvestmentNews. Published . Corrections