Intuitive Machines (LUNR) stock slides after Stifel downgrade as NASA moon rover decision nears

New York, January 9, 2026, 15:44 EST — Regular session

• Intuitive Machines shares were off 3.8% in afternoon trading, wiping out earlier gains.
• Stifel downgraded the stock to “hold,” pointing to growing uncertainty tied to a pending NASA rover award.
• Investors are gearing up for a key U.S. inflation report next week, along with the company’s next earnings.

Intuitive Machines Inc shares were down 3.8% at $18.88 on Friday afternoon, after a choppy session that took the stock from $17.82 to $19.73. About 14.0 million shares changed hands, a heavy day for the name.

The slide came after a Stifel downgrade. The firm cut the stock to “hold” from “buy,” even as it raised its price target to $20 from $18. Analyst Jonathan Siegmann said Stifel is seeing “increased nervousness” ahead of NASA’s Lunar Terrain Vehicle decision, which he called “imminent,” and cautioned that politics could complicate the award. Investing.com Canada

The contract is a big one, tied to NASA’s Artemis moon program, and it could influence the company’s revenue mix for years. NASA says it plans to buy the Lunar Terrain Vehicle, or LTV — a moon rover — “as a service” from industry, and it has picked Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost and Venturi Astrolab to develop concepts under a Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services contract vehicle with a combined maximum potential value of $4.6 billion. NASA

Friday’s risk tone steadied across markets after a softer U.S. jobs report kept attention on interest rates, even with wage growth holding firm. The Federal Reserve is expected to keep rates steady at its Jan. 27-28 meeting after payroll growth slowed in December and the jobless rate edged down to 4.4%, Reuters reported.

U.S. stock indexes were up after the jobs data, helping lift some high-beta names, while contract-focused moves like Intuitive Machines still traded to their own headlines.

Beyond the NASA decision, traders will also have Tuesday’s U.S. Consumer Price Index report for December on their radar — the kind of print that can jolt Treasury yields and, in turn, swing appetite for smaller growth stocks.

The company’s next scheduled earnings report is set for March 19 after the close, according to TipRanks. Investors will want clarity on contract timing, cash use and the pace of deliveries tied to government programs.

But the setup works both ways. Another delay in the rover decision, or an award to a rival, could hand the advantage to sellers in a stock already prone to sharp intraday swings, particularly in thin, headline-driven sessions.

Still waiting on any NASA word about the Lunar Terrain Vehicle award. Meanwhile, U.S. CPI hits Jan. 13, and Intuitive Machines’ earnings are penciled in for March 19.

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