Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Stock Price Up 6.5% – Time to Buy?

Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB)’s share price shot up 6.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as high as $63.77 and last traded at $62.71. 31,817,251 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 40% from the average session volume of 22,797,947 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.86.

More Rocket Lab News

Here are the key news stories impacting Rocket Lab this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab reported record third-quarter revenue of $267.8 million, up 72.7% year over year, and backlog rose 52% sequentially to about $3.57 billion. Its fourth-quarter revenue outlook of $270 million–$290 million also topped analyst expectations, supporting the growth case. Company results
• Positive Sentiment: Demand for Neutron remains encouraging: Rocket Lab secured more than $515 million in launch contracts during the quarter, taking its Neutron backlog to 16 missions and raising the base launch price to $70 million. Analysts also cited constrained launch availability as a potential benefit to the company. Neutron contracts
• Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab-built NASA ESCAPADE satellites completed their trans-Mars injection burns, providing a positive operational update. ESCAPADE update
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views were mixed: Cantor lowered its target to $111 but kept an Overweight rating; Barclays also trimmed its target while maintaining Overweight. Piper Sandler cut its target to $58 and moved to Neutral. Analyst commentary
• Negative Sentiment: The quarterly loss of $0.12 per share was wider than the $0.07 loss analysts expected, and the net loss expanded to roughly $80 million. Investors were also concerned that Neutron’s first launch is now expected no earlier than 2027, delaying a key growth catalyst and keeping execution and profitability risks in focus. Earnings reaction

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on RKLB shares. KGI Securities upgraded Rocket Lab from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Rocket Lab in a research note on Friday, September 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Berenberg Bank started coverage on Rocket Lab in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rocket Lab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.10.

Rocket Lab Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $62.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.80. The company has a quick ratio of 4.98, a current ratio of 5.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $37.52 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.25 and a beta of 3.15.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $267.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $257.21 million. Rocket Lab had a negative return on equity of 6.48% and a negative net margin of 21.51%. Equities analysts predict that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.20 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Lab

In other Rocket Lab news, SVP Arjun Kampani sold 6,034 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.65, for a total transaction of $402,166.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 250,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,723,618.05. This represents a 2.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Marvin Clevenger sold 15,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.63, for a total value of $1,048,001.13. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 458,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,954,878.12. This represents a 3.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 551,832 shares of company stock worth $34,940,037 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RKLB. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Rocket Lab during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,124,970,000. Katamaran Capital LLP grew its position in shares of Rocket Lab by 86.2% during the 1st quarter. Katamaran Capital LLP now owns 19,808 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after acquiring an additional 9,172 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the 1st quarter valued at $642,000. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Rocket Lab by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,410,930 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $90,610,000 after purchasing an additional 212,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its holdings in Rocket Lab by 149.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 49,957 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $3,209,000 after purchasing an additional 29,956 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

Rocket Lab is a space company that provides launch services and spacecraft and satellite systems for commercial, civil, and national security customers. Founded in 2006 by Peter Beck, the company operates internationally, with headquarters in Long Beach, California, and launch operations in New Zealand and the United States. Its launch business centers on Electron, a small orbital rocket designed to carry satellites to space, and HASTE, a suborbital vehicle used for hypersonic test missions. Rocket Lab is also developing Neutron, a larger launch vehicle.