SpaceX up 9% in premarket after earnings beat and Musk hints at Tesla tie-up

SpaceX jumped in premarket trading on Wednesday after the company reported surging revenue growth in its third quarter, and owner Elon Musk floated a potential SpaceX-Tesla merger.

The space company, which made its debut on the Nasdaq in the biggest IPO ever in June, reported third-quarter revenue on Tuesday of $14.6 billion, up 161% from the previous year, and beating LSEG consensus estimates of $12.72 billion.

Meanwhile, its operating income from operations came in at $2.8 billion, with net income of $4.4 billion, after reporting a net loss of $1.05 billion in the same period a year earlier.

On the earnings call, Musk said he's considering a combination with Tesla — which would mark the largest merger in history — and that the boards of both companies have created specific committees to discuss a consolidation.

"I do think there's a lot of merit to combining the companies as we are pretty much in the superintelligence singularity, and there's a lot to be gained from cooperating," Musk said on the call. Tesla is set to report third-quarter earnings after the closing bell on Wednesday.

SpaceX shares rose 9.6% before the markets opened on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tesla shares were up 2.7% in premarket trading.

It forecasts first-quarter 2027 revenue between $33 billion and $37 billion, beating the average analyst estimate of $22.2 billion, per LSEG.

"We delivered another strong quarter in Q3. Revenue grew an impressive 161% year-over-year, fueled by continued momentum in Connectivity and a clear inflection in our Super Intelligence business," SpaceX's Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnson said in the earnings release.

Johnson pinned the strong results on recurring revenue from its satellite internet business, Starlink, and significant expansion of its Super Intelligence [SI] infrastructure.

The company has dived into AI this year, which it's now calling SI. The segment is its largest business unit, with revenue soaring ninefold to $7.56 billion from $813 million in the same quarter last year.