Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Shares Up 3.3% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Rigetti Computing shares rose 3.3% on Friday, trading as high as $19.00 after closing at $18.34 the prior session. Volume was lighter than average, with about 18.0 million shares changing hands.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but constructive overall: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $30.64. Recent moves included Northland initiating coverage at market perform, while several firms lowered targets or downgraded ratings.
• Rigetti’s latest earnings showed a small EPS beat at -$0.03 versus expectations of -$0.05, but revenue came in below estimates at $1.87 million and fell 17.9% year over year. The company also saw insider selling from its CFO and CTO in March.

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI - Get Free Report) shares shot up 3.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $19.00 and last traded at $18.94. 18,035,445 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 29,626,754 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.34.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on RGTI shares. Northland Securities started coverage on Rigetti Computing in a research note on Monday, April 20th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Rigetti Computing from $51.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Rigetti Computing from $50.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Rigetti Computing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Rigetti Computing currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.64.

Rigetti Computing Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $6.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.85 and a beta of 1.79. The business's 50 day moving average price is $16.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.36.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.02. Rigetti Computing had a negative return on equity of 14.91% and a negative net margin of 3,111.92%.The company had revenue of $1.87 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.33 million. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Rigetti Computing

In other news, CFO Jeffrey A. Bertelsen sold 4,270 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.52, for a total transaction of $74,810.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 175,609 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,076,669.68. This trade represents a 2.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CTO David Rivas sold 36,719 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.52, for a total value of $643,316.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 651,914 shares in the company, valued at $11,421,533.28. The trade was a 5.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rigetti Computing

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of RGTI. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Rigetti Computing by 106.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 220,701 shares of the company's stock worth $1,748,000 after buying an additional 113,644 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Rigetti Computing by 138.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 81,047 shares of the company's stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 47,115 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Rigetti Computing by 25.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 112,409 shares of the company's stock worth $890,000 after acquiring an additional 22,770 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 197.8% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 25,592 shares of the company's stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 16,998 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rigetti Computing in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,115,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.38% of the company's stock.

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.

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