This week, the scale of Alphabet's — Google's parent company — stake in the aerospace corporation SpaceX became known. According to quarterly reports, the American tech giant owns SpaceX shares worth $94.1 billion, making it one of the company's largest shareholders.
Long-term Investment
Information about the significant shareholding was disclosed by Alphabet as part of its mandatory financial reporting. Investments in SpaceX are not new for the holding company: it has been a long-time investor, with initial funds invested back in 2015. Currently, Alphabet's stake in SpaceX is estimated to be between 4% and 6%.
Restrictions on Asset Sales
Despite the high value of the stake, Alphabet cannot immediately liquidate these assets. The shares are subject to restrictions imposed after SpaceX went public on the Nasdaq more than a month ago. According to the terms, an $80 billion portion of the shareholding is under short-term restrictions. The remaining portfolio, valued at $14.1 billion, falls under longer-term conditions: the holding company will not be able to sell this portion until the end of the third quarter of next year.
Financial Results
The increase in the market value of SpaceX shares, as well as other companies in which Alphabet has invested (such as the startup Anthropic), has brought significant benefits to the holding company. By the end of the second quarter of this year, the combined growth in asset value generated nearly $100 billion in profit for the company.
