Virgin Galactic shares stall as space tourism firm posts $73m loss
Richard Branson-founded Virgin Galactic fell to a $73m loss in the final quarter of 2019 as the space tourism firm announced it had received twice as many registrations for its space flight programme.
The loss, which has widened compared to the same period last year, meant that Virgin Galactic’s share price, which has risen nearly 200 per cent since the start of the year, stalled.
The figures
The California-headquartered firm posted a net loss of $73m in the final quarter, over 50 per cent larger than last year’s $46m loss.
Revenue was also far short of expectations, coming in at $529,000, with Refinitiv analysts predicting a take of $1.1bn.
Earnings also missed expectations, falling to $55m loss, nearly $10m worse than predictions of minus $45.7m.
As New York closed shares in Virgin Galactic were trading at $34.04, a 0.2 per cent fall on the day.
Why it’s interesting
The firm, which is alongside Elon Musk’s SpaceX one of the pioneers of civilian space flight, has seen its share price blast off in recent weeks as it gears up to a first flight, which could fall later this year.
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Branson’s company first listed in October last year, and saw its shares rise eight per cent to $12.77 in its first day of trading.
Since September the firm has doubled the number of registrations of interest in flight reservations to 7,957, and has sold roughly 600 tickets for its inaugural flight so far.
Virgin Galactic also announced today a new scheme which will allow online registrants to pay a $1,000 refundable deposit to secure a front-of-line position for future ticket reservations.
The deposit means that when new tickets, which cost around $250,000, are released, registrants will be offered them first.
What Virgin Galactic said
George Whitesides, chief executive, said: “Throughout 2019, we continued to achieve key milestones in our mission to open access to space in a safe, innovative and affordable way.
“During the fourth quarter, we took major steps toward reaching that goal by completing our transaction with Social Capital Hedosophia and becoming publicly listed on the NYSE, as well as building operational readiness at Spaceport America in New Mexico.
“The progress we made in 2019, combined with the high level of interest from potential customers, underpin the steps we are taking toward reopening ticket sales. We are continuing to build on our strong momentum as we enter the most exciting chapter of our story to date and prepare for commercial launch.”