Today I did what I often do when markets are calm, coffee is strong, and my conviction is medium but curious:
I placed a $100 bet on Iridium Communications (IRDM).

Nothing dramatic.
No YOLO.
No “this will change my life” delusion.

Just 5.82411 shares at $17.17, for a clean $100 total.

Peanuts? Yes.
Useless? Maybe.
Fun and potentially sneaky? Definitely.

---

The Trade (a.k.a. “Relax, It’s Only $100”)

Here’s the official receipt of my questionable genius:

5.82411 share(s) of your order to Buy 5.82411 share(s) of IRDM has been executed at $17.17
Total: $100

That’s it.
No leverage.
No options.
No adrenaline spike.

Just a tiny satellite quietly joining my portfolio.

---

Why I Did This (a.k.a. The Double-Up Free Stock Strategy, Again)

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you already know the drill.

I like making small, contained bets with asymmetric payoff:

• If it goes nowhere → I lose lunch money.
• If it doubles → I sell half, get my $100 back, and keep the rest as a “free stock.”

That’s the whole idea behind my Double-Up Free Stock Strategy:

Let time and volatility do the heavy lifting, while I try not to do anything stupid.

It doesn’t always work.
Sometimes it works beautifully.
Sometimes it works eventually, which is my favorite kind.

Is this rational?
Only partially.

Is it entertaining?
Very.

---

“But Wait… Isn’t SpaceX Going to Kill Iridium?”

Yes.
No.
Maybe.
But also… not really.

This is where things get interesting.

Whenever SpaceX enters a market, the default take on the internet is:

“Game over. Everyone else is dead.”

That makes for great tweets, but poor analysis.

---

Iridium vs Starlink: Same Orbit, Different Jobs

Iridium and Starlink are often mentioned in the same sentence, but they’re built for very different purposes.

Starlink:

• Massive bandwidth
• Consumer and enterprise internet
• Large terminals
• Power-hungry
• Optimized for speed and scale

Iridium:

• Mission-critical communications
• Aviation safety (ADS-B via Aireon)
• Maritime distress systems (GMDSS — and yes, Iridium is the only certified provider)
• Military and government use
• True global coverage, including the poles
• Tiny, low-power terminals

Starlink is about Netflix in the desert.
Iridium is about “please don’t let this plane crash.”

Different problems. Different buyers. Different regulations.

---

The Regulatory Moat (a.k.a. Boring but Powerful)

Iridium lives in some extremely unsexy but very sticky markets:

• Aviation safety
• Maritime emergency systems
• Government and defense contracts

These sectors don’t switch providers because someone offers faster downloads.
They care about:

• certifications
• reliability
• guarantees
• decades-long track records

This creates a regulatory and institutional moat that SpaceX can’t just bulldoze through, even if it wanted to.

---

Financially Speaking: Not a Rocketship, More Like a Satellite Utility

From a business perspective, Iridium is quietly solid:

• The NEXT constellation is already deployed → capex is largely behind them
• Recurring revenues
• Strong margins
• Not constantly begging capital markets for money

This is not a “100x” story.
It’s more like:

“Please don’t break, and keep sending cash.”

Which is… kind of perfect for a free-stock strategy.

---

Why This Was a Good Stock for This Kind of Bet

Let’s be clear:
I’m not saying IRDM is guaranteed to double.

I’m saying it checks several boxes I like for small, speculative-but-not-stupid bets:

✅ Real business
✅ Real revenues
✅ Real moat
✅ Space exposure without pure hype
✅ Misunderstood due to “SpaceX kills everyone” narrative
✅ Boring enough to be ignored, important enough to survive

Worst case?
I lose $100 and write another mildly sarcastic post.

Best case?
At some point IRDM rerates, I sell half, and keep a free satellite company in my portfolio.

Not bad for peanuts.

---

Final Thoughts (and Mild Self-Mockery)

Will this trade change my life?

No.

Will I forget about it for months and randomly rediscover it later feeling either smart or foolish?

Almost certainly.

But that’s kind of the point.

Small bets.
Long time horizons.
A little curiosity.
A little fun.
And just enough self-control to avoid doing anything catastrophic.

Iridium won’t outrun SpaceX.
But it doesn’t need to.

It just needs to keep orbiting.

And now I own 5.82411 tiny pieces of it. 🚀