James Murdoch owns SpaceX stake valued at $7.5 billion

James Murdoch invested an estimated $120 million in SpaceX before the company went public this year. PitchBook senior research analyst Franco Granda calculated that the stake could now be worth as much as $7.5 billion. The valuation is based on public records from a 2023 court case involving Tesla shareholder litigation.

Court filings showed Murdoch purchased three tranches of SpaceX stock: two $50 million blocks acquired in 2019 and 2020 through a private investment firm, and a separate $20 million personal investment made in 2019.

Holdings and valuation details The SpaceX S-1 filing attached to the public offering did not name Murdoch but listed stock awards to chief financial officer Bret Johnsen valued at $4.40 per share with a 2030 expiration. Those figures provided a benchmark for pre-IPO shareholder valuations.

Several factors could affect the final value. Murdoch may have sold shares, and the company approved a five-to-one stock split in May. Precise acquisition dates remain undisclosed.

Murdoch's investments Murdoch previously received $2.2 billion from the 2019 sale of 21st Century Fox assets to Disney. He later established Lupa Systems and made additional investments including a $300 million acquisition of a large portion of Vox Media.

He has also profited from Tesla shares held in the JRM Rev Trust and Seven Hills Trust, with sales netting $107 million since spring 2025. Tesla owns 19 million shares in SpaceX. "Given that James Murdoch has been in the SpaceX orbit for a while, since Tesla, it's unsurprising that he's benefited financially," said veteran media analyst Brian Wieser of Madison and Wall.