The article suggests Rocket Lab and Redwire as alternatives to SpaceX for investors looking at the space sector. Rocket Lab operates across launch services, satellite manufacturing and defense, including a contract worth up to $397 million for spacecraft that detect and track airborne threats, and agreed in June to buy Iridium for about $8 billion. Its Neutron rocket has been pushed to 2027 due to technical challenges, and the stock trades at around 44x price-to-sales versus 59 for SpaceX. Redwire builds spacecraft components and deployable solar arrays for NASA, the European Space Agency and the U.S. Space Force, and is expanding into uncrewed aircraft and in-orbit pharmaceutical research, with demand rising in its second-quarter 2026 results. The article views Rocket Lab as the more cautious choice given its larger revenue base, while Redwire carries higher risk but trades at a price-to-sales ratio of just under 4 times.
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