SpaceX workers get their next chance to sell today as 328.4 million shares — about 7% of the locked stock — open for trading [4]. This marks the fourth step of a ladder rather than a finish line, and that shift changes everything about how staff manage their wealth.

The big picture:

The old rule after an initial public offering (IPO) was a single wall at 180 days. Everyone waited, everyone was freed on the same date, and every worker made one choice to sell or hold.

SpaceX built a ladder instead. When the company listed on June 12, less than 5% of its shares were free to trade [2]. The rest unlock in stages, tied to earnings reports and fixed dates after pricing [3][4].

I have been watching this calendar all year. A staged release moves the hard work from one big choice to a series of small ones.

Releases of about 7% land on days 70, 90, 105, 120 and 135. These hit on August 20, September 9, September 24, October 9 and October 24 [3].

The schedule is public, and it is rare. A company this large normally starts with more shares on the open market. This one started below 5% and will climb toward 40% by December 8 [2].

By the numbers

  • 328.4 million — Shares freed today: The Oct 9 block is roughly 7% of the restricted stock, and an equal slice follows on Oct 24 [4].
  • $135 — IPO price: SpaceX priced shares here on June 11 and began trading on the Nasdaq exchange the next day [1][2].
  • Under 5% — Float at debut: Less than one share in twenty was free to trade on day one, which is why each release moves the market supply so much [2].
  • 40% — Float by December 8: The share of the company free to trade once the staged releases finish, while the other 60% stays locked into 2027 [2].

What I’d watch:

What strikes me here is how these staggered dates clash with standard corporate trading rules.

  • The earnings trigger: A release of about 1.3 billion shares becomes free to trade after the third-quarter report [4][5]. This is about 28% of the block and ranks as the largest single release of 2026 [4][5]. The date depends on when SpaceX reports, so the calendar matters more than the math [3].
  • The window gap: A lockup date simply lifts the IPO ban on a slice of your shares. It does not open your employer’s internal trading window, which usually shuts in the weeks before earnings [3]. The right to sell and the ability to sell are two different gates.
  • The 10b5-1 clock: A worker who is not a director or officer needs a pre-set trading plan (a 10b5-1) signed at least 30 days before its first trade [3]. Directors and officers face a 90- to 120-day wait [3]. A plan meant to trade in December has to exist in early November [3].
  • The tax-year seam: The final 180-day window ends December 8, and a sale lands in the 2027 tax year if it slips past January 1 [3][5]. Splitting a planned sale across December and January spreads the tax hit over two years [5].

The catch

Staggering the release does not make the choice easier. If anything, it makes it easier to drift.

My read on the trap: A single cliff forces one clear call, but six windows invite six small delays. A worker who never writes a plan down can “decide” six times to sell nothing, ending the year with all their risk in one stock [5].

Most of the tax bill also landed before anyone could sell. Restricted stock unit (RSU) shares were taxed as wages the day they were delivered [3].

The company likely held back taxes at the 22% flat rate, leaving a gap for high earners to pay the following April [3]. The bigger the grant, the larger that gap.

The math is also only as good as the stock price. A bonus release meant to trigger 30% above the $135 offer never fired [3]. The stock closed no higher than $125.33 during the measuring window, proving the ladder is fixed but its cash value is not [3].

At a glance

  • The Big Shift: SpaceX split its 180-day IPO lockup into a ladder of staged releases, giving workers six distinct selling windows — the next today, Oct 9 — rather than a single date [3][4][5].
  • Why It Matters: Stock holds most of a senior engineer’s wealth, and a lockup decides when it becomes cash. Holding less than 5% of shares free to trade at the debut means each release moves the market supply heavily [2].
  • What I’d Watch:
  • The Q3 release: An estimated 1.3 billion shares, about 28% of the block, become free to trade after third-quarter earnings [4][5].
  • The window gap: Whether the internal trading window is open in the same week a stock block unlocks, as the two are separate gates [3].
  • The trading plan: Whether enough time remains to adopt a pre-set trading plan before December, since staff need 30 days and officers need 90 to 120 [3].
  • The Catch: A staged release rewards a plan written before the first window and punishes delay. The tax gap on RSUs and the missed bonus trigger mean the headline stock size rarely matches the actual cash received [3].

Related reading

Sources

[1] https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1181412/000162828026042639/ [2] https://www.reuters.com/business/spacex-shares-slip-lockup-expiry-adds-post-ipo-woes-2026-08-06 [3] https://bfawealth.com/deals/spacex-lockup [4] https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/09/29/elon-musk-cant-sell-spacex-shares-until-2027-heres [5] https://savantwealth.com/savant-views-news/article/spacexs-staggered-lockup-means-six-selling-decisions-not-one-how-employees-should-think-about-each-window [6] https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1181412/000162828026036936/spaceexplorationtechnologi.htm