Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc (NYSE:SPCE) shares are falling Thursday after the company announced an at-the-market equity program to fund its fleet expansion.

What To Know: After the market close on Wednesday, Virgin Galactic reported mixed financial results for the third quarter.

The company reported revenue of $402,000, missing estimates for revenue of $2.23 million, and a quarterly loss of $2.66 per share, beating estimates for a loss of $4.25 per share, per Benzinga Pro.

Virgin Galactic reported negative free cash flow of $118 million and guided for fourth-quarter free cash flow of negative $115 million to negative $125 million. The company ended the quarter with $744 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities.

"Our spaceship program remains on track to begin commercial operations in 2026, and with strong progress made on the Delta program, we now have the engineering capacity to advance design work on a second mothership, which will accelerate the next phase of growth for Virgin Galactic," said Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic.

A few hours after the earnings report was released, Virgin Galactic announced that it entered into a sales agreement to offer and sell up to $300 million of its common stock from time to time in an at-the-market program.

The company said it expects to use the net proceeds from any sales of its common stock to further accelerate the development and production of its next-generation spaceflight fleet, including an additional mothership and Delta Class spaceships.

SPCE Price Action: Virgin Galactic shares were down 11.9% at $6.27 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo: courtesy of Virgin Galactic.