SpaceX may face an easier path to S&P 500 entry if these newly proposed rules take hold

By Emily Bary and William Gavin

As SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI reportedly gear up for IPOs, S&P Dow Jones Indices is considering whether to allow 'fast-track' entry and relax profitability requirements

Elon Musk's SpaceX could benefit from a proposed relaxation of rules around S&P 500 entry.

The prospect of massive initial public offerings by unprofitable companies is making a major index provider reconsider its rules.

S&P Dow Jones Indices, which oversees the S&P 500 SPX and the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, announced late Thursday that it's launching a review process to see whether megacap companies should be subject to less stringent eligibility requirements and "fast-track" entry.

"In 2026, some U.S. megacap companies may conduct IPOs," S&P Dow Jones Indices said in a statement. "Additionally, certain U.S. public companies have reached or may reach megacap status without positive net income from continuing operations."

The review of megacap index treatment comes as SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI reportedly prepare for IPOs as soon as later this year.

Representatives from the companies didn't immediately respond to MarketWatch's requests for comment.

See also: Why SpaceX's IPO could put pressure on Tesla's stock

Huge new public companies "have the potential to achieve immediate and material investor ownership, trading liquidity and market relevance, yet adherence to the existing index eligibility rules could prevent such IPOs' timely index inclusion and impact the overall index's effectiveness as a benchmark," the index provider said.

The notice outlines numerous potential S&P 500 changes that are under review. They include making it so newly public companies only have to have been listed for six months - rather than a year - to earn a spot in the flagship S&P 500 index.

If the S&P followed through with such a rule, it would join at least one other index provider. Nasdaq in March approved a "fast-entry" rule designed to make it easier for newly listed large companies to join the Nasdaq-100. FTSE Russell is also exploring its own fast-entry rule.

SpaceX was most recently valued at $1.25 trillion, according to PitchBook, but the rocket company is reportedly planning to raise money at a valuation as high as $2 trillion, which would instantly make it one of the largest companies in the U.S. by market capitalization.

OpenAI recently closed a fundraising round that valued it at $852 billion post-money, while Anthropic was most recently valued at $380 billion post-money. Anthropic has also received funding offers that would value the lab at more than $900 billion, Bloomberg News reported.

Current candidates for S&P 500 entry also have to be profitable on a GAAP basis over a cumulative 12-month period, as well as in the most recent quarter. But the proposed new rule would exempt megacap companies from that requirement.

SpaceX posted a loss of nearly $5 billion last year on revenue of more than $18.5 billion, The Information reported this month, partially as a result of the hefty spending conducted by xAI, which the company recently acquired. Anthropic expects to turn an overall profit in 2028, while OpenAI projects turning a profit in 2030, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Don't miss: Tesla is headed down a path of 'runaway, unsustainable' spending, analysts warn

However, the Journal also reported this week that OpenAI missed multiple monthly revenue targets earlier this year, as well as its 2025 revenue target for ChatGPT.

S&P Dow Jones Indices is taking market feedback on the proposals, which it believes could "enhance the continued ability of the subject indices to reflect the investable market universe while maintaining the core principles of transparency, consistency, and replicability."

Read: Elon Musk is about to get a lot richer. It was worth the headaches.

-Emily Bary -William Gavin

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04-30-26 1822ET