Harvard fund discloses US$2.2 billion stake in Musk’s SpaceX

[NEW YORK] Harvard Management disclosed a US$2.2 billion stake in SpaceX, showing how the university’s endowment has profited from an early bet on Elon Musk’s giant rocket company.

Harvard reported it holds the position in its 13F filing on Friday (Aug 14), revealing it’s one of the largest endowment holders of the stock. Space Exploration Technologies is the largest single stock disclosed in the filing, which shows Harvard held US$4.3 billion of US equities. Harvard oversaw US$57 billion as of June 2025, the latest publicly available figure. 

SpaceX’s record-breaking initial public offering in June has boosted returns for college endowments that made investments through venture capital firms, sometimes more than a decade ago. 

Others that have profited include the University of California’s investment arm, which reported in a filing this week a position worth about US$1 billion, as well as the University of North Carolina and Washington University in St Louis.  

Harvard’s holdings potentially reflect both directly owned shares and distribution from private funds. Patrick McKiernan, a spokesman for Harvard Management, declined to comment on individual investments. 

The gains from SpaceX, which currently has a more than US$1.8 trillion valuation, come at a time when US university finances are constrained from threats to federal research funding, a smaller pool of college-age students due to demographic changes and muted returns from private equity.

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Endowment funds with more than US$500 million returned a median of 18.9 per cent before fees in the year ended in June, according to Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service.

SpaceX shares have fluctuated since the company debuted at US$135. Shares fell 0.9 per cent on Friday, closing at US$140.

Money managers overseeing more than US$100 million in US equities have to file a 13F form within 45 days of the end of each quarter to list their holdings in stocks that trade on US exchanges. BLOOMBERG