SpaceX’s blockbuster IPO is coming. This overlooked industrial company will be a big winner

Cnbc · May 09, 2026 · 2291 words · By Morgan Chittum

Industrial Infrastructure Commercial Space Race Investment Opportunity

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What to know about Industrial Infrastructure

Elon Musk 's SpaceX is planning the largest stock debut in history.

Claims checked 34

Techniques found 3

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Elon Musk 's SpaceX is planning the largest stock debut in history.

Why it matters

One likely winner from the deal: an overlooked industrial company founded decades before the Wright brothers ever took to the skies.

Common ground

Industrial gases giant Linde has a small but fast-growing business supplying critical gases to the space industry, enabling the propulsion systems of rocket engines and satellites to get them where they need to go.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Transfer, Glittering Generalities: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Industrial Infrastructure story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Linde currently houses its space business within its manufacturing end market, which increased 5% in the first quarter?
How does this story connect Industrial Infrastructure with Commercial Space Race over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/09/spacex-ipo-jim-cramer-linde-stock-winner.html

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 90% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Transfer 70% confidence

Projecting positive or negative qualities of one thing onto another to make it accepted or rejected.

Why it matters: Recognizing transfer helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Glittering Generalities 80% confidence

Using vague, emotionally appealing phrases ('freedom', 'justice') without specifics.

Why it matters: Recognizing glittering generalities helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 34 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 24

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 2

check_circle Corroborated 2

verified Verified 2

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Claim 1: “Linde currently houses its space business within its manufacturing end market, which increased 5% in the first quarter.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 2: “Linde is building a sprawling $100 million plant in Texas near SpaceX to ease delivery.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence confirms Linde is a global engineering company that builds industrial plants, but there is no specific mention of a $100 million plant in Texas near SpaceX.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Irina Vyacheslavovna Rakobolskaya (Russian: Ири́на Вячесла́вовна Ракобо́льская; 22 December 1919 – 22 September 2016) was a mathematician and physicist who served as the chief of staff of the women's …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irina_Rakobolskaya

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The S&P 500 is a stock market index maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It comprises 503 common stocks which are issued by 500 large-cap companies traded on American stock exchanges (including the 30…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_S&P_500_companies

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; German: Technische Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, me…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_University_of_Munich

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 3: “Linde's total revenues... are projected to be roughly $36 billion this year, according to FactSet.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 4: “France's Air Liquide and Pennsylvania-based Air Products and Chemicals are two of Linde's publicly traded peers in the industrial gas industry.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 5: “Linde had a huge hand in NASA's Artemis II mission... traveling 252,756 miles from home. It used some 200,000 gallons of Linde's propellants for launch.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 6: “Investment into space companies hit a record $8 billion in the first quarter, according to data from Seraphim Space , more than double the previous record set in the final three months of 2025.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 7: “The stock is up almost 16% year to date, ahead of the S & P 500's 8% advance.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 8: “Rocket Lab in 2021 and Firefly Aerospace in August 2025 .”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 9: “If you go back to 2008, there was maybe only around half a billion dollars of private investment in space. For the last few years, it's been well over $10 billion a year.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 10: “The company broke ground on that air separation plant in Brownsville, Texas, to produce gases for an unnamed customer.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 11: “Linde is also expanding its industrial gas plant in Mims, Florida”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 12: “He estimated Linde supplies gases to between 65% to 75% of launches on average.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 13: “The company was founded in 1879 by Carl von Linde”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 14: “The most recent came on May 5, with a Falcon 9 rocket bringing 24 Starlink satellites into low-earth Orbit.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 15: “Over the past decade, Linde's stock has outperformed the S & P 500, up about 336% versus a 259% gain for the index.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 16: “SpaceX has conducted 11 test flights for Starlink since 2023 , including five last year .”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found to verify the specific number of Starlink test flights conducted since 2023.

info

Claim 17: “The rocket and satellite maker is targeting a late June listing .”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence confirms SpaceX's general activities and recent Starship tests, but does not mention a specific target date of late June for a public listing.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Main article: Falcon 1 The first successful Falcon 1 launch in September 2008 SpaceX developed its first orbital launch vehicle, the Falcon 1, with internal funding. [27][28] The Falcon 1 was an expen…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. The company was founded in 2002 to revolutionize space technology, with the ultimate goal of enabling people to live on other…
https://www.spacex.com/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 1 day ago · SpaceX just took a big step toward its next Starship test flight, firing up all 33 engines of the vehicle's Super Heavy on the pad in Texas.
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/…

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Claim 18: “The Musk venture is seeking to raise as much as $75 billion, at a target valuation of around $1.75 trillion, according to Reuters.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources report that SpaceX is targeting a valuation of approximately $1.75 trillion and seeking to raise around $75 billion.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — SpaceX could seek a valuation between $1.75 trillion and $2 trillion in the offering. Reports said the company may raise about $75 billion, which would make the IPO the largest public listing on recor…
https://www.analyticsinsight.net/news/spacex-ipo-faces-union…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — $1.75 Trillion. This isn't just a financial event; it's a bet on the future of humanity's footprint.SpaceX confidentially filed for an IPO on April 1. $1.75 trillion target valuation. Up to $75 billio…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/maelnavarro_spacex-is-prepari…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — SpaceX IPO targets a $1.75 trillion valuation in June 2026 — and Tesla investors may feel the heat. Here is what the historic listing really means for your portfolio.
https://jiotest.com/spacex-ipo-2026-tesla-investors-valuatio…

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Claim 19: “SpaceX confidentially filed initial public offering (IPO) paperwork last month.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources, including Bloomberg and LinkedIn (reporting on the event), state that SpaceX has filed confidentially for an IPO.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — SpaceX has filed for a historic IPO that could value the company up to $1.75 trillion, potentially making it the largest listing ever. The move may boost Musk’s wealth and reshape global space, satell…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bella-jasquez_musks-spacex-fi…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — SpaceX has filed confidentially for an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter, bringing billionaire Elon Musk’s rocket, satellite and AI company closer to delivering the…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-01/spacex-is…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — History says SpaceX stock is likely to decline sharply during its first year on the public market. Between 1980 and 2025, about 9,300 companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq Stock Ex…
https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/05/06/spacex-ipo-stock-w…

schedule

Claim 20: “Linde also supplied propellants for the first Artemis mission in 2022.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 21: “Linde has a small but fast-growing business supplying critical gases to the space industry”

VERIFIED

Linde's own official web pages specifically mention providing propellant gases for spacecraft ion drives and industrial gases for the space industry, and Wikipedia confirms they supply industrial and specialty gases.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Linde Gas supplies industrial gases, medical gases, specialty gases, refrigerants and other chemicals.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linde_plc

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Industrial gases and gas-based technologies from Linde have the potential to increase productivity, improve quality and reduce emissions in the glass industry.
https://www.linde-gas.com/whats-happening/article-folder/we-…

travel_explore

schedule

Claim 22: “The city of Brownsville has confirmed the plant is to service SpaceX.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 23: “Last year, Linde announced two new long-term supply contracts with space customers and investments to boost production capacity.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 24: “But this U.K.-based, nearly $230 billion market capitalization company has been for more than a century supplying gases such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen to many industries.”

VERIFIED

Wikipedia and other sources confirm Linde supplies industrial gases (CO2, oxygen, nitrogen) and has a significant presence in the UK. The company's long history (founded 1879) supports the 'more than a century' claim.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Linde Gas supplies industrial gases, medical gases, specialty gases, refrigerants and other chemicals.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linde_plc

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Linde is a leading global industrial gases and engineering company with 2025 sales of $34 billion.Linde also delivers state-of-the-art gas processing solutions to support customer growth, efficiency i…
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS-WwuHZhM6anBIgoFvTbYg

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — In the UK, Linde has approximately a ~60% share of the gases market. Linde are jointly developing a 24 MW PEM electrolyser at Leuna (ITM Linde Electrolysis).
https://www.skyquestt.com/report/industrial-gases-market

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Claim 25: “In 1902, von Linde built the first industrial-scale air separation plant to produce liquid oxygen”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 26: “The company's current workhorse rocket is the Falcon 9, which has completed over 50 missions so far in 2026.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 27: “Linde has been in the space game for more than six decades, from NASA's Apollo program to today's Artemis II moon mission.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While evidence confirms Linde is a global leader in industrial gases and was founded in 1879, the provided evidence does not specifically mention the Apollo program or the Artemis II mission.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A Linde Gas gaseous nitrogen plant Linde is a global multinational chemical company and the world's largest industrial gas supplier by market share and revenue. Founded by German scientist and enginee…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linde_plc

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Leading global industrial gases and engineering company making customers more successful and helping to sustain, decarbonize and protect our planet.
https://www.linde.com/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Linde is a global leader in the industrial gas industry with 300+ U.S. welding supply store retail locations. We offer a comprehensive range of products and services to meet the diverse needs of indiv…
https://www.lindedirect.com/

help

Claim 28: “Begleiter has a buy rating on Linde's stock.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found regarding David Begleiter's specific rating on Linde stock.

schedule

Claim 29: “SpaceX developed a satellite for Starlink that uses argon as a propellant.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 30: “Last year, a record 4,510 objects... were sent into space. That's according to United Nations data compiled by researchers at Our World in Data”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 31: “Linde supplied liquid oxygen to NASA's Apollo program, which landed the first humans on the moon in 1969.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 32: “SpaceX leases a launch pad there [Cape Canaveral].”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 33: “The 2025 total is well ahead of the previous record of 2,903, set in 2023.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 34: “Meta Platforms has a market cap of $1.55 trillion.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

MarketWatch explicitly lists Meta Platforms Inc. with a market cap of $1.55T.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The table below lists all companies that have ever had a market capitalization of $1 trillion or more, the date on which their market cap first exceeded each milestone, and their record value.[3][4]. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_public_corporations_by…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Ranking the world's top companies by market cap, market value, revenue and many more metrics.This is the list of the world's biggest companies by market capitalization. It ranks the most valuable publ…
https://companiesmarketcap.com/

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web search NEUTRAL — META | Complete Meta Platforms Inc. stock news by MarketWatch. View real-time stock prices and stock quotes for a full financial overview.Market Cap $1.55T. Shares Outstanding 2.2B. Public Float 2.19B…
https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/meta

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.