Firefly Aerospace (FLY +16.98%) stock is soaring higher in Thursday's trading. The space-tech company's share price was up 18.2% as of 1 p.m. ET and had been up as much as 32.3% earlier in the session.
Firefly posted its Q3 results after yesterday's market close, and investors are reacting positively to the print. While the company's per-share loss of $1.50 in the period came in $1.07 higher than called for by the average Wall Street analyst estimate, sales of $30.77 million beat the average forecast by roughly $3.1 million. Despite the big valuation gain in today's trading, the company's share price is still down 52% from where it stood at market close on the day of its August initial public offering (IPO).
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Is Firefly stock a buy right now?
With its Q3 report, Firefly said that it now expects full-year revenue to be between $150 million and $158 million -- a guidance range that comes in far ahead of Wall Street's previous target for revenue of $135.5 million. The sales acceleration is a promising indicator that demand for its launch, orbit, and other technologies and services may be already be significantly stronger than previously anticipated.
NASDAQ: FLY
Key Data Points
The commercialization of space is an exciting growth trend that is likely still in very early innings. Conversely, there's still a lot of uncertainty involved when it comes to mapping its growth trajectory -- and Firefly and many other companies in the category trade at highly growth-dependent valuations.
For risk-tolerant investors seeking space stocks capable of delivering explosive long-term returns, Firefly could make for a worthwhile portfolio addition. On the other hand, the stock's high-risk profile means that it comes with a predisposition for volatility that won't be suitable for other categories of investors.
