Space Exploration Technologies Corp (NASDAQ:SPCX) shares are dropping on Thursday as the company’s second post-IPO lockup expiration frees up roughly 319 million shares for trading.

• SpaceX stock is among today’s weakest performers. Why are SPCX shares down?

Second Lockup Expiration Hits Thursday

Thursday’s lockup expiration lands on SpaceX’s 70th day trading as a public company, building on an earlier round two weeks ago that put roughly 912 million shares into circulation and pushed the stock’s public float up from under 5% to more than 12%.

That earlier unlock hasn’t stopped the stock from finding its footing recently. SpaceX rallied 4.17% to close at $145.84 on Monday after new 13F disclosures showed multiple large institutions had taken multibillion-dollar positions in the company, a move that carried shares back above their $135 IPO price.

This isn’t the last supply increase investors will need to absorb. Another roughly 319 million shares unlock Sept. 9, with additional releases set for Sept. 24, Oct. 9 and Oct. 24, ahead of the last unlock (excluding founder shares) when the full 180-day restriction period ends on Dec. 8.

Despite the recent weakness in the stock, SpaceX carries a consensus Buy rating with an average price forecast of $226.08 across 43 analysts. Recent analyst moves include:

• UBS: Buy (Maintains Target to $210.00) (Aug. 17)

• Argus Research: Upgraded to Buy (Target $160.00) (Aug. 7)

• Macquarie: Outperform (Maintains Target to $250.00) (Aug. 5)

SPCX Shares Are Dipping

SPCX Price Action: SpaceX shares were down 5.49% at $131.98 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro.

Image: Findaview/Shutterstock