Space & Aerospace

Sector thesis

Space & Aerospace covers companies that build, launch, and operate spacecraft, satellites, and the rockets that carry them. It includes both traditional defense contractors and newer commercial players competing to lower launch costs and open new markets in orbit. The sector is riding a genuine structural shift: satellite internet is becoming real infrastructure (not science fiction), governments are treating space as essential to national security, and the cost to reach orbit has dropped dramatically over the past decade. This isn't hype—it's reshaping how we think about global connectivity and military capability. More satellites mean more launches, more ground equipment, and more services needed to keep them running. Three sub-categories matter most. Launch & propulsion companies focus on getting payloads to orbit—the hardest and most capital-intensive part. Satellite operators and manufacturers build the hardware that actually does useful work: communications, Earth imaging, GPS, weather monitoring. Support services—ground stations, tracking software, insurance, refueling depots—are the unglamorous backbone that makes the whole system work. The biggest risks are real. Launch is still dangerous and expensive. Regulatory approval moves slowly. Competition is intense and margins can be thin. Satellite mega-constellations (thousands of small satellites) are unproven at scale—we don't yet know if they'll be profitable. Space debris is a growing problem that could disrupt operations. And the sector depends heavily on government contracts, which are subject to budget cycles and political shifts. For a retail portfolio, this sector works best as a smaller, higher-risk allocation. Watch for: launch success rates (failures matter), customer contract wins, and regulatory progress on spectrum allocation. Traditional aerospace names offer stability; newer entrants offer growth potential but with more volatility. This isn't a core holding—it's a conviction bet on a real megatrend.