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Intuitive Machines Soars on $180.4 Million NASA Lunar IM-5 Award

The win reinforces the company’s place in NASA’s commercial Moon program, steering investors toward long-term contracts over recent earnings weakness.

Overview

  • NASA granted Intuitive Machines a $180.4 million task order for IM-5 under its Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, which pays private firms to deliver gear to the Moon.
  • IM-5 will use the larger Nova-D cargo lander to carry seven payloads to the lunar South Pole, including an Australian Space Agency rover and Honeybee Robotics hardware.
  • Shares hit an all-time high of $24.30 and closed at $23.99 with about 40.7 million shares traded, signaling broad interest and a sharp revaluation of the stock.
  • Cantor Fitzgerald kept an Overweight rating as Stifel raised its target to $22 with a Hold, reflecting optimism about the backlog with caution on valuation.
  • Recent results missed forecasts with Q4 revenue at $44.8 million and a $0.35 loss per share, yet enthusiasm around Artemis II and the new award boosted confidence in future missions.