The Space-Defense Rally Powered Satellite Stocks to New Highs in 2025

AI may have grabbed most of the attention, but satellite stocks delivered an orbital performance. Space plays like EchoStarSATS

, ViaSatVSAT

, and Planet LabsPL

surged 200%+ in 2025, powered by Trump’s $175B “Golden Dome” defense push and a revived moon program. As defense budgets rise and commercial demand grows, space is being pulled into the core stack.

• EchoStar founder Charlie Ergen saw his net worth soar after $40B in spectrum deals with AT&TT
  and SpaceX, aimed at eliminating global mobile dead zones.
• Planet Labs quintupled its market cap, tripled its backlog year over year, and secured contracts with NATO, the European Space Agency, and a $13.5M NASA satellite-data task order.

Gravity falls: SpaceX’s anticipated IPO is pulling capital into the broader space trade, with the company floated as a potential $500B listing. ViaSat won a US Space Force satellite contract set for a 2028 launch, while OndasONDS

surged on $14.3M in defense orders for its Optimus autonomous drone system. With NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman emphasizing the moon mission as central to the “orbital economy,” analysts see runway for continued gains.