SpaceX Shares Fall 6% to Near $180 but Stay Well Above $135 IPO Price

SpaceX shares fell 6% on Thursday to just under $180 a share. The five-day volume-weighted average price stands at $179 a share, indicating that investors who bought in the open market after the debut are now approximately breaking even. The stock opened at a $135 IPO price and climbed to an intraday high above $225 on Tuesday.

Since that peak, shares have dropped 20% and are trading at the same level recorded on Monday, the second trading day after the offering. SpaceX's market value briefly approached $3 trillion after the IPO before the reversal set in. CNBC reported that investors have begun reassessing whether the rapid advance can be justified by fundamentals.

Retail investors accessed the shares through brokerage platforms including Robinhood, Fidelity, and SoFi. Many received only a fraction of the shares they requested, sometimes as few as one share, but those allocations were purchased at the $135 IPO price.

Those retail buyers therefore retain gains even after the recent decline, though the size of their positions limited the dollar impact of both the earlier rise and the subsequent drop.

CNBC's Chris Hayes and Deena Zaidi contributed to the story.