Analysts have identified EchoStar NASDAQ:ECHO, the operator of Boost Mobile and satellite television provider Dish, as a potentially cheaper route for investors seeking exposure to SpaceX NASDAQ:SPCX, the recently listed space technology company. Citi, a global financial-services firm, maintained its buy rating on EchoStar with a $126 price target, suggesting that the company could benefit from a higher SpaceX share price over the next year as well as continued efforts to reshape its own business. Citi analyst Michael Rollins noted that EchoStar may create additional value through spectrum monetization, possible sales of its video and other assets, and the after-tax value of its expected SpaceX investment. EchoStar sold some of its spectrum licenses to SpaceX in 2025 in exchange for shares and is expected to receive additional SpaceX stock when the agreement closes in the second half of 2027.
EchoStar shares gained as much as 30% from the start of the year through the end of May, when SpaceX released its S-1 filing, but the stock has since moved in the opposite direction from SpaceX. Following SpaceX's record $86 billion public offering in June, EchoStar shares declined nearly 24%, while SpaceX remained about 13% above its IPO price. Deutsche Bank, a global investment bank, reinstated coverage of EchoStar with a buy rating and a $143 price target, with analyst Bryan Kraft estimating that the per-share value of EchoStar's SpaceX stake is approximately 20% above EchoStar's current stock price. Kraft suggested that investors may effectively be acquiring SpaceX exposure at a 20% discount while receiving EchoStar's remaining assets without additional implied cost.
Analysts also see potential value in EchoStar's remaining spectrum holdings and businesses including Boost Mobile, Hughes and Sling TV. Additional upside could come from a narrowing net asset value discount, a resolution of tower litigation and progress through the Dish DBS bankruptcy. New Street Research, an investment research firm, estimated that EchoStar could still be worth $165 per share despite the Dish DBS bankruptcy filing earlier this month. With Wall Street's average SpaceX price target standing near $236 and implying more than 55% upside from its current trading level, investors may view EchoStar as a value-focused way to gain indirect exposure to SpaceX.