Insider Selling: Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) CTO Sells $97,346.71 in Stock

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) CTO Andrew Joseph Bestwick sold 5,791 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $97,346.71. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 1,036,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,417,194.01. The trade was a 0.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Rigetti Computing Trading Down 5.5%

Shares of RGTI traded down $0.93 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $16.07. 19,838,649 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 32,422,680. Rigetti Computing, Inc. has a 1 year low of $12.53 and a 1 year high of $58.15. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $17.53 and its 200-day moving average is $17.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.86 and a beta of 1.99.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.05). Rigetti Computing had a negative return on equity of 17.50% and a negative net margin of 2,189.54%.The firm had revenue of $5.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.09 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.22 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Rigetti Computing

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heritage Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Rigetti Computing by 454.3% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 1,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 954 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Rigetti Computing by 138.4% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. PeakShares LLC purchased a new position in Rigetti Computing in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in Rigetti Computing during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC boosted its stake in Rigetti Computing by 320.5% during the 4th quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RGTI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wedbush started coverage on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Rigetti Computing in a report on Monday, July 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Friday, August 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.67.

Rigetti Computing News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Rigetti Computing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rigetti created a dedicated Systems Delivery organization to support growing demand for on-premises quantum systems. David Rivas was appointed Chief Operating Officer to oversee manufacturing, delivery, customer-facing engineering, and commercial operations, while Andrew Bestwick, Ph.D., became Chief Technology Officer to focus on chip and processor development. The company is targeting 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity for its Cepheus-1-108Q system. Rigetti operating structure announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter revenue increased to $5.14 million from $1.80 million a year earlier, and Rigetti received a U.S. Department of Commerce letter of intent for up to $100 million in quantum research and development support. New system deliveries involving partners including Nvidia and HPE also strengthen the commercial-growth narrative, although the company remains deeply unprofitable. Rigetti revenue and R&D support article
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains broadly bullish, with previously published price targets ranging from $25 to $40, well above recent trading levels. However, these targets are based on expectations for future technology and commercial execution rather than current profitability. Rigetti analyst views
• Negative Sentiment: Investors viewed the separation of delivery and chip-development leadership as a major shake-up, intensifying concerns that Rigetti may have needed a reorganization to address execution challenges. The upcoming resignation of board member Dr. Ray Johnson adds to the perception of leadership turnover. Rigetti leadership shake-up article
• Negative Sentiment: Quantum-computing stocks were sold broadly, including Rigetti, IonQ, and D-Wave, without a clear company-specific catalyst. The sector remains highly sensitive to interest rates and risk appetite because these companies are pre-profit and richly valued. Quantum stock selloff article
• Negative Sentiment: Despite strong revenue growth, Rigetti’s second-quarter net loss widened to $52.61 million from $39.65 million a year earlier. The company’s continuing losses and reported insider selling further reinforce investor concerns about valuation and cash usage.

About Rigetti Computing

Rigetti Computing is a pioneering quantum computing company that designs and manufactures superconducting quantum processors alongside a complementary software stack. Founded in 2013 by CEO Chad Rigetti, the company has developed end-to-end quantum systems—from cryogenic hardware to control electronics—to advance the performance and scalability of quantum machines.

At the core of Rigetti’s offering is its Quantum Cloud Services (QCS) platform, which enables developers and enterprises to access quantum processing units (QPUs) and hybrid quantum-classical workflows via the cloud.