Space-themed ETFs are booming, attracting $1.3 billion in new cash in the last month alone, as asset managers rush to launch new products ahead of the anticipated SpaceX IPO.
Total assets under management in the space ETF segment have reached $3.3 billion, driven by investor enthusiasm for Elon Musk's SpaceX and his vision of colonizing Mars.
'We tend to see this happen whenever something new and shiny appears,' says Bryan Armour, ETF analyst at Morningstar.
Until this year, only one space ETF existed. In the last three months, six new funds have launched, including the $1.27 billion Tema Space Innovators ETF, which gathered more assets in seven weeks than the pioneer UFO fund did in seven years.
New launches are accelerating, with two more ETFs expected to debut soon. Some issuers are planning leveraged ETFs tied to SpaceX.
However, analysts warn of overlap, as all seven space ETFs hold the same four stocks among their top holdings. 'It makes it hard for any fund to differentiate itself except through marketing,' says Todd Sohn of Strategas.
