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Making Headlines: SPACs & Space, the New "Gold", and Chips

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Space SPACs go Orbital

Space services and technology SPAC Intuitive Machines (LUNR - Free Report) launched higher by more than 100% in Wednesday’s session on seemingly no news at all. The dramatic move in shares is reminiscent of some of the moves that occurred during the “SPAC Mania” of 2021. A SPAC Special Purpose Acquisition Company), also known as a blank check company, is a company created for the sole purpose of raising capital through an initial public offering (IPO) to acquire or merge with another existing company. After raising capital from the IPO, the SPAC has a limited time (usually a couple of years) to identify and acquire a suitable company. Because investors often buy shares during the IPO stage without knowing which company the SPAC will eventually acquire, SPACs get the nickname “bank check companies”. 2021 was the height of the SPAC boom. SPACs such as Opendoor (OPEN - Free Report) , SoFi (SOFI - Free Report) , and Virgin Galactic (SPCE - Free Report) saw breathtaking short-term upside moves amid out-of-control speculation before collapsing.

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Wednesday, Terran Orbital , another space-related company, saw shares rocket higher by more than 100% in the session. Terran Orbital spiked higher on news that it had won a $2.4 billion contract to build 300 satellites. With a market cap of under $500 million, the contract is a significant win for the company. Shares hit initial resistance at the 200-day moving average.

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Chasing these types of moves has been painful in recent years. For now, investors should observe from the sidelines and stick to highly ranked stocks with larger market caps.

Is Lithium the New Gold?

Tesla’s (TSLA) blistering growth over the past decade has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that electric vehicles are not only viable but are here to stay. Traditional auto manufacturers like General Motors (GM), Ford (F - Free Report) , and Toyota (TM), are rushing to catch up. Meanwhile, EV makers such as Rivian Automotive (RIVN - Free Report) , Nio (NIO - Free Report) , and Lucid (LCID - Free Report) fight to gain a foothold. Unfortunately, electric vehicle batteries can not be produced without lithium. Because of this fact, there is now a rush for EV makers to find cheap lithium.

This week, rumors are swirling that Tesla is looking to vertically integrate by making its own foray into the lithium mining business by purchasing Brazilian lithium miner Sigma Lithium (SGML - Free Report) . While the reports are unconfirmed as of now, SGML saw unusual call activity in the June $40 and $50 calls.

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In other Tesla news, CEO Elon Musk and California Governor Newsom announced the news that Tesla would be locating its “engineering headquarters” in Palo Alto.

Nvidia Earnings

After a delayed release Wednesday evening, chip leader Nvidia (NVDA - Free Report) shot higher after reporting robust fourth-quarter earnings. Nvidia smashed both top and bottom-line estimates and earned $0.88 cents on revenue of $6.05 billion. Nvidia continues to grow earnings at a strong clip, leading the market higher. The company is not only growing quickly but also efficiently. NVDA’s return on equity (ROE) of 30.75% is well above the semiconductor industry’s 11.06%

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Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD - Free Report) also rose in sympathy.

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