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Investing.com – Virgin Galactic stock (NYSE:SPCE) fell 3% on Friday after reports that founder Richard Branson sold shares.
Branson, through his vehicle Virgin Investments, sold 10.4 million shares of Virgin Galactic this week at prices ranging from $25.75 to $34.39 apiece, according to an SEC filing. The stake was worth $300 million, according to InsiderScore.com.
Before the stake sale, Branson and entities owned by him held 24% stake in Virgin Galactic. They now hold less than 20% stake in the spaceflight company.
On Wednesday, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) downgraded the company’s stock ahead of the 8-month-long grounding of its sole mothership, Eve, for enhancements starting September.
Analyst Kristine Liwag sees the stock at $25. The stock touched a low of $25.11 so far in the session underway today.
During the maintenance period, Virgin Galactic will not conduct any space flights until summer of 2022, according to StreetInsider.
While Liwag views this positively as the company is investing in increasing its long-term space flight capacity, she said such investments take time.
The enhancements planned will enable Eve to fly more than once per week. Before it is grounded, Eva has a flight scheduled in September.
According to Liwag, another successful flight could be a catalyst for the stock.
