Finally, my dreams have come true. All of my life, I’ve been waiting to be involved in the space industry. Well, my friends, that moment has finally arrived. One attractively priced Canadian space technology stock and another recent American IPO have cemented my ambitions to join the space race in full force.
Maxar Technologies (TSX: MAXR)(NYSE: MAXR) is my favourite company at the moment to scratch my itch for space travel. It is deeply involved in areas of space propulsion, satellite imagery, and space robotics, all of which are of deep interest to me.
The stock price has been knocked down immensely over the past couple of years, largely due to gobs of acquisition and merger-related debt, failed satellites, and a range of other difficulties both self-inflicted and beyond the company’s control.
This stock has been up and down like a yo-yo ever since it fell to its low of around $5 a few months ago. I now am finally making some money on it again after its recent run up. I have to admit I trade this one somewhat, buying when it goes below $10 and selling some on a sharp bounce. I will always hold a core position, though, since I just can’t allow myself to get rid of this space tech company.
Another space-travel stock that I have recently added to my hopes-and-dreams portfolio is Virgin Galactic Holdings (NYSE: SPCE). I bought this stock on the first day of the IPO, which is something that I would normally never do. But I thought to myself, “Hey, a company solely based focused on space travel? How can I not buy?” Not exactly fundamental analysis, but sometimes it is fun to just throw some money at something you love and believe in and see what happens.
Well, I am now handily down about 20% and am still willing to throw a few more dollars at this stock. I imagine I will do the same with this one as I did with Maxar. I will add to it below $10 and sell some if it happens to spike — something which it has not yet done, aside from its inaugural debut.
While I am pretty pumped about owning a stake in humanity’s race towards the stars, I will never put my eggs all into these baskets. These are high-risk investments in a relatively new space, and I could never recommend going too hard into either of these stocks at the moment. It is this Trekkie’s dream come true to see humanity finally make a push for space. But these are hopes-and-dreams stocks at the moment. As such, I would not put my retirement funds into these non-existent to barely noticeable dividend payers.
If you want to bet on space travel, know that these are long shots. The recent fall in Virgin shows that the long-term viability is yet to be seen. As a space-loving Fool, I can’t take myself away from these stocks, so I have to take a swing at them.
But responsible investors who are less interested in our journey to the stars might not find them quite as appealing. I could not recommend these yet as solid, stable investments. They are a very small part of my portfolio — a part I reserve for hopes and dreams.
