SpaceX posts first profitable quarter: Q3 revenue jumps 161% to $14.6B; Musk confirms committees discussing SpaceX-Tesla merger
What happened
SpaceX reported Q3 2026 results after Tuesday's close: revenue of $14.58 billion, up 161% year over year and well above the $12.72B analyst consensus, with net income of $4.4 billion (diluted EPS $0.35 vs $0.14 expected) swinging from a $541M Q2 loss. Adjusted EBITDA hit $8.8B, up 306%. The Super Intelligence segment ($7.6B revenue, +$431M operating profit) overtook Starlink-led connectivity ($5.25B revenue, +69%) as the company's biggest division; the Cursor acquisition (closed Aug 14, implied $60B value) added $608M in revenue. Starlink reached 13.6M consumer subscribers (up 1.6M in the quarter) and 3,800+ aircraft equipped. Capex was $19.6B, roughly in line. On the earnings call, Musk said special committees of independent directors at both SpaceX and Tesla are discussing a possible merger 'at the request of shareholders,' adding he supports a deal but cannot participate due to conflicts of interest. Shares rose ~2-4% in after-hours trading after closing at $147.79.
Why it matters & what’s next are part of Pro, along with the audio summary.
Start your free 14-day trialWho’s affected
- SPCX (sharply positive: first profitable quarter as a public company, beat on every segment)
- TSLA (positive: merger chatter moves from rumor to a formal committee process; RBC has modeled a $480/share deal)
- AI-infrastructure/data-center equipment names (positive: SI capex of $16.4B and 1.7 GW nameplate compute signals continued buildout)
- Connectivity/LEO broadband peers (mixed: Starlink growth is strong but consumer ARPU slipped from $83 to $69)