What retirement savers need to know

What retirement savers need to know

SpaceX shares have gained more than 30% since the aerospace and satellite communications company went public on Friday. Now, some people may be wondering whether they missed their chance to invest in the high-flying stock if they didn’t buy it at the IPO or its first few days of trading.

Spoiler: They haven’t.

In fact, even if they don’t know it, many retirement savers already own this high-profile investment — or soon could — through funds in their 401(k), IRA or brokerage account. 

SpaceX is already in some mutual funds, ETFs

A number of professionally managed, active funds own SpaceX stock, including FMR, the parent company of Fidelity Investments, the nation’s largest 401(k) provider. FMR owns 0.98% of existing SpaceX shares across 46 Fidelity funds, according to S&P data.

Baron Capital Group owns 0.21% of the outstanding shares across seven funds. Franklin Resources, BlackRock, and Neuberger Berman also hold shares of SpaceX in several funds.

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Eight active funds — mutual funds, ETFs, and closed-end funds — hold positions in SpaceX that exceed 10% of their net asset value, according to Morningstar’s most recent data. Funds with the most exposure include four Baron funds, where SpaceX accounts for 20% or more of their assets. 

SpaceX will also be included in some passive index funds in the coming weeks, as the company enters two major stock indexes that have recently introduced policies to fast-track the adoption of mega-IPOs.

The Russell 1000 can include a massive IPO after as few as five days of trading. For SpaceX, that would be Thursday after the market close. Nasdaq adds a stock to the Nasdaq-100 after 15 trading days — or, in this case, on July 6. 

What SpaceX means for your 401(k)

SpaceX displayed outside the Nasdaq as the company launches their IPO on June 12, 2026.

Adam Jeffery | CNBC

Once SpaceX is in these indexes, the stock will be added to mutual funds and exchange-traded funds that track these benchmarks, including index funds and ETFs in many 401(k)s and workplace retirement plans, experts say. If you own these funds, you’ll own SpaceX.

“From a 401(k) plan perspective, I would say it’s not an immediate opportunity,” said Jaime Magyera, head of BlackRock’s Retirement and U.S. Wealth Advisory businesses. But, for some people, the stock “will gradually make its way into index funds that are likely in their 401(k) plans.” 

Since SpaceX listed on the Nasdaq with a low percentage of publicly traded shares — known as a small “float” — experts say its initial impact and overall weight in these benchmark indexes will be modest.

“It’s one of many, many, many stocks in the ETF,” said Sylvia Kwan, CEO of Ellevest, a wealth management and financial planning firm. But, “if SpaceX does well, you could still benefit by not directly investing in stock.”

Check ‘under the hood’

Keep an eye on the funds’ holdings in your portfolio to see whether they own SpaceX or other high-flying stocks, and how large an allocation.

“I’m not sure whether people have really looked under the hood,” Kwan said. “But I would like to think that this could be the beginning of that.”

When it comes to large allocations of SpaceX stock in a particular fund or across your portfolio, “some people might be comfortable with that level of risk,” said certified financial planner Nathan Nicholaisen of Redspire Wealth Management in Des Moines, Iowa. “I can’t answer that for them, but I think the first part is just awareness.”

Nicholaisen said investors should ask themselves, “Are you comfortable with that level of risk based on how much you have allocated to it and what your long-term goals are?” 

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