Humans have always wanted to conquer space. Many of us surely dreamed of becoming astronauts when we were kids. Some people remained true to their dreams of exploring the Universe even as adults.

In the 21 century, however, humanity saw space gaining another meaning. Today, we can not only explore the Universe but also make money from it thanks to aerospace companies. Virgin Galactic is perhaps the most popular of them all.

Today, you have an opportunity to explore the history of the aerospace giant and learn about all the benefits of investing in its stock. So, let’s find out whether space is a profitable investment.

About Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. is the world’s first commercial aerospace company that boasts a wide-ranging portfolio of patented technologies. The corporation is involved in the development of technologies in the field of human spaceflights, as well as in the production, assembly, design, testing, and post-flight maintenance of spacecraft.

Virgin Galactic was established in 1999. British entrepreneur Richard Branson is the founding father of the company.

The first test flight of the Virgin Galactic spaceplane took place in the summer of 2010. Following the test launch, the company opened ticket sales for the public for the first-ever space tourist flight. In just a few months, over 30,000 people from 120 countries signed up to reserve a ticket.

A year later, the corporation partnered with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to conduct research in space.

Today, space tourism remains Virgin Galactic’s main priority. The company develops and operates a new generation of space vehicles to open space for everyone, as well as launches small satellites.

Virgin Galactic's main competitors in the commercial spaceflight industry are Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX.

Notably, the space tourism company has not sent a single client into Orbit yet and is still making only test flights. In December last year, Virgin Galactic’s first manned test flight failed to reach outer space as planned due to an engine ignition failure. In February 2021, the aerospace giant said it needed more time for technical checks ahead of a space flight test.

In May 2021, however, Virgin Galactic announced its spaceship successfully reached space. In this light, the firm was granted permission from the US Federal Aviation Administration to fly passengers to space in the summer of 2021. However, the spaceflight company had to postpone the first commercial flight until the fourth quarter of 2022 due to technical problems in the vehicle selected for launch.

Today, Virgin Galactic sells tickets for its space flights at a price of $450,000 a seat. More than 600 people are already on the waiting list to take a trip to space.

Advantages and disadvantages of Virgin Galactic

Having gained insight into the history of the space travel company, let’s now define its advantages and disadvantages:

Pros:

- popular brand

- high-potential leader in a promising industry

- steady global demand for space flights

- broad portfolio of patented technologies

- focus on the safety of space flights

Cons:

- lack of strong fundamentals

- positive net profit could be yielded only in a few years

- numerous operational, regulatory, and ethical risks

- highly-volatile stock that spooks medium and long-term investors

- spaceflights are priced only for the ultra-rich

Virgin Galactic has fallen prey to the COVID-19 pandemic. Between January 2020 and October 2021, the company lost more than $1,39 billion. Virgin Galactic is expected to generate profits in 3-5 years, analysts say.

Virgin Galactic stock

Being classified as a company in the aircraft and weapons industry, Virgin Galactic’s stock is traded on the New York, St. Petersburg, and Moscow Stock Exchanges under the ticker symbols* SPCE and SPCE-RM.

If you decide to invest in Virgin Galactic, you should open a trading account with a brokerage company that has access to large global stock trading floors, including the NYSE. It usually takes just a few minutes to open it. For instance, it will take only 3 minutes to register an account with InstaForex.

The minimum trade size is 1 lot, which equals 1 share of the company. To calculate your profit, you can use Trader’s Calculator on the InstaForex website.

Then, feel free to start selling and buying shares of Virgin Galactic or any other popular company. The MT4 trading platform from InstaForex, favored by all traders, will become your ideal assistant in trading.

When trading the company's stock, it is important to pay attention to the following aspects:

  • study relevant US economic statistics. Traditionally, on the eve of the release of important data, stock grows more volatile.
  • always analyze the current state of the engineering industry in the global market.
  • monitor forecasts for the development of innovative and promising technologies in the aerospace industry.

*Ticker is an abbreviation of trading instruments quoted on the exchange.

Richard Branson, founder and owner of Virgin Galactic, is the company’s biggest shareholder, with an 18% stake.

Dividend policy

Virgin Galactic Holdings does not make dividend payments to shareholders. It remains unknown whether the firm is planning to pay dividends to shareholders in the future.

Monitor changes in Virgin Galactic’s dividend policy and track the latest developments in the engineering industry online in the special analysis section of the InstaForex website.

Conclusion

Nowadays, investors see Virgin Galactic stock as an attractive investment instrument. Demand for the company’s stock is fueled by optimistic forecasts. The global commercial aerospace market will expand 3 times by 2030, analysts say.

Nevertheless, investing in Virgin Galactic carries considerable risks. So, diversification would be the best option here.

If these facts have made you think it is time to invest in Virgin Galactic, go to the InstaForex website and open an account. It will take you only a few minutes to register.