ahead of spcx launch, 4 space related tickers, 400 call contracts, 1 week expiry.

bare with me, this is the first time i am writing something like this. i am about to do something that my wife and her boyfriend would call irresponsible. however, what they don't know is that i have just strapped my portfolio onto a falcon 9, t-minus 4 days to liftoff. how you may ask? i am taking 400 call contracts across the space sector going into the spacex hype window.

https://preview.redd.it/ak91vd3ca56h1.png?width=711&format=png&auto=webp&s=bee1be524818e0683d98dfdc405cf1df52282e01

• asts: 10,000 shares x $125 = $1,250,000
• tsla: 10,000 shares x $475 = $4,750,000
• lunr: 10,000 shares x $40 = $400,000
• rklb: 10,000 shares x $150 = $1,500,000

that is 40,000 shares of controlled exposure or $7.9 million of total controlled strike exposure. i am no rocket scientist, no pun intended, but that's a lot of money.

my thesis:

let me preface something, this is not a spacex launch means every space stock should be worth more forever thesis...that would be regarded. this is a short term attention, sympathy, gamma, and headline momentum thesis.

the market does not need a clean fundamental connection for 4 trading days, it needs:

• a major space headline
• retail attention
• call buying
• algos chasing sector momentum
• wsb hyping space sector
• hedge funds being dragged in

since spacex is currently private, most people cannot gamble directly on the rocket daddy. that means us public traders need to look for the closest positions we can take, aka:

asts = satellites to phones & actual spacex launch connection

rklb = rockets

lunr = moon missions & nasa contracts

tsla = elon liquidity magnet & spacex emotional derivative

this is not value investing. this is trying to be ahead of the moment where retail remembers space exists.

why 6.12:

you may be asking yourself, why on the day of the launch? this is the week where spacex is already sitting in the news cycle. the market is watching spacex ipo demand and valuation. meaning, space becomes the theme of the week. not for the day. not when the business matures. this week. we don't care about discounted cash flow models, we care about:

• volume
• iv expansion
• momentum
• headline flow
• retail chasing
• hedges

current strike distances, based on current prices:

yes, those are far otm. yes, theta is holding a baseball bat. yes, iv crush is waiting outside my window. however, this isn't a retirement account we are playing here...it is a launch week! this is a beautiful opportunity! i have already account for the what ifs, and the point is not that every single one goes itm. the point is that one or two can violently reprice if the sector catches a bid and options flow stacks fast enough.

asts, the actual direct catalyst:

asts is the cleanest spacex sympathy play here, this is not just space vibes. asts has bluebird satellites tied to spacex falcon 9 launch plans. that matters because the market can connect the dots without needing an hour long video.

• spacex rocket launches asts satellites
• asts stock is already a space/telecom hype machine
• retail sees satellite launch
• calls get bid
• stock runs

asts is also the type of name that can move stupid when people start pricing future network in space instead of company with losses today. if launch hype, space ipo hype, and call flow all hit at once, this is exactly the kind of ticker that can stop trading like a company and start trading like a fever dream.

tsla, the elon liquidity magnet:

let's get one thing very clear, tesla is not spacex. now that we have that out of the way, for you regards who didn't know, they both have some things in common. elon. the market does not treat elon names like normal assets. for example, tsla is the liquid elon proxy. so, when spacex dominates headlines, a chunk of retail does not think:

“hmm, how do i properly value private aerospace cash flows?”

they think:

“elon rocket good, tsla call.”

get this, it's not just vibes anymore. spacex is literally a tesla customer. tesla reported about $143m in 2025 revenue from spacex, mainly from vehicle sales. so spacex is not just sitting in the elon cinematic universe. it has been buying tesla products.

and it gets even better. tesla also owns spacex stock. which basically is creating a loaded spring by this loop:

• coil 1

* spacex buying tesla

• coil 2

* tesla owns spacex stock

* elon controls the narrative

* retail sees the connection

• coil 3

* elon controls the narrative

* retail sees the connection

• coil 4

* retail sees the connection

• boing

* calls get smashed

is it enough for a short term hype trade? absolutely. why? because the market does not need perfect logic for one week. it needs a connection people can understand in five seconds.

so now, here we are, spacex launch hype has hit the timeline, but spacex is private. so where does the public gambling money go? the most liquid elon ticker on earth. tsla. that makes tsla more than just a car stock randomly attached to a rocket stock. it makes tsla the easiest access for traders who want spacex exposure without waiting for spacex shares. if you didn't read above, it only needs around a 16% move to hit my strike, and we all know for tsla, that is not impossible. for example:

if my memory serves me right, we are overdue for another big day for tsla. call it corporate incest, but that is the trade.

lunr, moon beta with a small cap fuse:

lunr is the moon mission part of the space sector. intuitive machines is tied to lunar infrastructure, and the broader private moon economy. does spacex launching starlink directly make lunr worth more? no. lunr is the kind of stock that can move because people are not buying earnings, but because they are buying the sentence companies that will go to the moon, no pun intended.

all these small cap space names need is attention, volume, and a reason for traders to say this one has more room. yes, a nearly 40% move is aggressive, all it needs is one sector wide space squeeze and a bunch of people sorting by space stocks under $50.

rklb, the gold mine:

rklb has already had it's fair share of being in the headlines. now, with spacex going public, it's a no brainer. it literally has rocket in the name, if you think that sounds stupid, your're wrong. ticker psychology matters when retail is involved. while rocket lab has its own business, launches, space systems, and neutron narrative. this trade, the key is simpler. spacex hype makes people search for rocket stocks, boom! rklb is right there. if the sector gets a strong sympathy bid and rklb gets call volume, this is the exact name that can get chased because everyone understands the trade in 3 seconds. rocket company go up because rocket company next to bigger rocket company.

why will this all work:

this sector does not need all four companies to suddenly become better businesses by friday. it needs a temporary repricing of attention. that of which we are already seeing, spacex has attention and is highly anticipated, but spacex is private. so public space tickers absorb the demand.

hypotheticals that could kill this trade:

• spacex launch gets delayed
• launch happens but ipo hype fades

* this would be the biggest plot twist i've seen

• iv gets crushed
• space stocks sell the news
• market goes risk off
• tsla drags everything down
• theta eats my legs by wednesday

my final thesis:

i am not buying these because the fair value model says they should be higher. i am buying them because for one week, the market may turn into a giant spacex sympathy machine.