Space tourism company Virgin Galactic shares are up after it was announced it was time to start taking humans to the edge of space. However, the stock results are not encouraging for a company that has not yet started its commercial space tourism service.
Virgin Galactic has released its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2021 and for the full year. Virgin Galactic stock rose 4.2 percent to about $8.15 per share. But for broad stock indices, the results aren’t necessarily positive: the S&P 500 and Dow Jones averages fell 1 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively.
Virgin Galactic lost $1 billion
Starting commercial space tourism flights will not be easy for Galactic. Stocks in the company of famous entrepreneur Richard Branson fell after he said commercial operations would be delayed in late 2021 due to a problem with the materials used in the spacecraft.
However, the US-based space tourism firm announced that the timeline for the start of its commercial operations has not changed and launches are expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Although this update, which was shared last week, had a positive impact on company stocks, Galactic’s fourth quarter results were not satisfactory. A loss of approximately 31 cents per share was reported last quarter on revenue of $141,000. The company also lost approximately $67 million over the past quarter.
Based on these results, Virgin Galactic closed 2021 with more than $930 million in cash and short-term securities losses on its balance sheet. Virgin Galactic has lost $1 billion in the past two years, according to the company’s public disclosures.
However, let’s point out that earnings and sales are not so important to the stock, Galactic is still in the pre-sale phase. Investors want to hear when spacecraft development and flight tests and commercial operations can begin.
Virgin Galactic shares rose almost 32 percent a week before the opening of ticket purchases for the upcoming space flights. Shares ended the week at $8.40, down 4 cents, or 0.5 percent, per share, despite the huge gain.
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