'Dean of Valuation' Aswath Damodaran is not buying SpaceX: 'Too richly priced'

New York University finance professor Aswath Damodaran understands why some people are getting ready to pay up for SpaceX, but he says "it is too richly priced for my tastes." Damodaran shared his valuation analysis in his blog as Elon Musk 's company prepares for its blockbuster public market debut this week. While SpaceX is targeting a $135 price , which puts its value at $1.77 trillion, Damodaran's assessment values the company at between $1.25 trillion and $1.35 trillion. While some call that lofty valuation hype , others are looking at the numbers. The professor, who is often referred to as the "Dean of Valuation," falls in the second category. Damodaran combed through the recently released SpaceX prospectus to reach his conclusion, but he also admits he is "more investor than trader" as he prefers to buy stocks based on valuation rather than market momentum. In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Damodaran said pricing SpaceX's initial public offering at nearly $1.8 trillion is justified because it was already valued at $1.2 trillion a few months ago as a private company. However, from a valuation perspective, investors need to ask questions about its businesses, he said. SpaceX's biggest wild card SpaceX has three primary businesses: space (rockets and launches), connectivity (Starlink) and artificial intelligence (xAI). …