Intuitive MachinesNASDAQ: LUNR

Have you ever thought about what it would take to go to the Moon, Mars, or other destinations in the cosmos?

An exciting theme is emerging within the industrial sector as several small-cap stocks battle for dominance in the aerospace and defense industry, particularly in the space race. Space investors today have many choices, ranging from established defense titans to narrowly focused start-ups.

The space exploration company got a huge contract award from NASA in September.

The lunar vehicle maker is a high-risk play with high potential rewards.

Intuitive Machines recently sourced 2 major contracts with NASA for just shy of $5b for communications, lunar surface research, and autonomous operations. Intuitive Machines is partnering with SEOPS to provide rideshare opportunities, providing transport services for space equipment. This will help drive profitability. I'm forecasting IM to achieve net profitability in eFY26 as the NASA contracts take off.

Intuitive Machines secured a NASA contract worth up to $4.82 billion, positioning it as a leader in the emerging trillion-dollar space industry. Summit Therapeutics' ivonescimab outperformed the world's best-selling cancer drug in a recent clinical trial.

NASA awarded Intuitive Machines a 10-year, $4.8 billion space communications contract last week. Even spread out over a decade, the average revenue from this single contract is three times the company's current annual revenue stream.

Does Intuitive Machines, Inc. (LUNR) have what it takes to be a top stock pick for momentum investors? Let's find out.

Intuitive Machines NASDAQ: LUNR is a small-cap space stock that has one massively ambitious long-term goal among its priorities: helping to create human settlements on the moon. The company has over tripled in value this year, and analysts still see upside in the name.