Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Trading 2.3% Higher – Should You Buy?

Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB) was up 2.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $85.55 and last traded at $82.08. 17,873,874 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 25% from the average session volume of 23,984,725 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.25.

Key Rocket Lab News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Viasat selected Rocket Lab to build a satellite bus for a U.S. Space Force mission. Rocket Lab will provide its Lightning platform for Viasat’s Protected Tactical SATCOM-Global program, an anti-jam, maneuverable GEO satellite designed for secure communications supporting U.S. and allied forces. The award expands Rocket Lab’s national-security exposure and could strengthen its satellite-systems backlog. Viasat Selects Rocket Lab to Build GEO Satellite for U.S. Space Force’s Protected Tactical SATCOM-Global Program
• Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab successfully deployed eight satellites for MDA Space and Globalstar. The satellites are the first batch of 17 platforms being built under a $143 million contract and will support Globalstar’s direct-to-device communications and IoT services. All eight spacecraft reached orbit, made contact and began commissioning, providing validation of Rocket Lab’s manufacturing, launch and mission-operations capabilities. Rocket Lab Satellite Platforms Built for MDA Space Successfully Reach Orbit
• Positive Sentiment: Investors continue to focus on Rocket Lab’s record growth and backlog. Recent coverage highlights approximately $2.36 billion in backlog and significant year-over-year revenue growth, suggesting demand is broadening across commercial, government and defense customers before Neutron begins flight operations. Rocket Lab’s Biggest Breakthrough Has Nothing to Do With Neutron
• Neutral Sentiment: Rocket Lab’s second-quarter revenue reached $234.1 million, up nearly 62% year over year and slightly above estimates. However, the company reported an adjusted loss of $0.08 per share, missing the $0.06 loss expected by analysts, while management cited integration costs and business-mix effects on margins.
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider-trading data shows substantial open-market selling by executives during the past six months, including CEO Peter Beck. The sales may reflect compensation or diversification, but they can weigh on sentiment given RKLB’s elevated valuation and continued losses.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on RKLB shares. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. New Street Research assumed coverage on shares of Rocket Lab in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. KGI Securities upgraded Rocket Lab from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $107.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Rocket Lab from $73.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.65.

Rocket Lab Trading Up 2.3%

The stock has a market cap of $49.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -303.99 and a beta of 2.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 4.98 and a current ratio of 5.48. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.52.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by ($0.02). Rocket Lab had a negative net margin of 21.51% and a negative return on equity of 6.48%. The firm had revenue of $234.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.62 million. Equities research analysts expect that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Arjun Kampani sold 88,000 shares of Rocket Lab stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.98, for a total value of $9,502,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 264,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,582,845.90. This trade represents a 24.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Frank Klein sold 44,390 shares of Rocket Lab stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.57, for a total value of $6,328,682.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,043,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $148,821,266.79. This trade represents a 4.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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 3,749,294 shares of company stock valued at $351,008,208 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rocket Lab

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Rocket Lab during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Rocket Lab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rocket Lab by 109.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 796 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

Rocket Lab is an aerospace company that provides launch services, spacecraft, and space systems for commercial and government customers. The company’s primary launch vehicle is Electron, a small-lift orbital rocket designed to deploy small satellites and rideshare payloads to low Earth orbit. Rocket Lab also develops and manufactures the Rutherford engine, noted for its electric-pump-fed design and additive-manufactured components, which powers Electron and supports the company’s propulsion capabilities.