BlockBeats report: On May 23, SpaceX recently filed its IPO application, with its mission statement reading: “To build the systems and technologies required to make life multiplanetary, understand the true nature of the universe, and extend the light of consciousness to the stars.” Behind this grand narrative, business ultimately returns to measuring corporate value in monetary terms; retail investors are typically the first targets for initial share sales after the IPO, while insiders who acquired shares at a fixed price aim to profit by selling portions of their holdings amid market hype.
According to Nasdaq disclosures, the proportion of loss-making companies among annual IPOs has risen from 20% since the 1980s to 80%. Nearly two-thirds of companies underperformed the broader market three years after their IPO, with most (64%) lagging by more than 10%. While some companies perform well over the long term and some loss-making firms eventually turn profitable, accurately pricing new IPOs and assessing their investment value remains extremely challenging. An increasing number of companies are using non-GAAP metrics that do not conform to U.S. GAAP accounting standards.
Although non-GAAP metrics can sometimes be useful, they are often used to make companies appear more valuable. SpaceX also uses "adjusted EBITDA" (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization), which in financial disclosures considers only net income or loss while excluding depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, impairments, restructuring costs, and interest income and expenses. This results in a figure significantly higher than the actual GAAP net profit. By doing so, the company presents the image that "ignoring these non-operational items, our core business is in fact very healthy and strong"—a narrative particularly suited for capital-intensive, early-stage companies like SpaceX that have made massive upfront investments but have not yet generated substantial profits, thereby making it easier to gain market recognition and a higher valuation during an IPO.