Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Stock Price Up 9.8% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Rigetti Computing's stock rose 9.8% to a closing price of $39.60, significantly higher than its previous close of $36.06, with a trading volume that increased by 118% compared to the average session.
• Analysts have set target prices for Rigetti Computing, with Williams Trading establishing a target of $50.00, while Needham raised their target from $15.00 to $18.00, indicating a generally positive outlook with six "buy" ratings and one "sell" rating.
• Insider trading activity includes a notable sale by Director Helene Gail Sandford of 62,000 shares valued at approximately $2.78 million, reducing her position by 34%.

Shares of Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI - Get Free Report) traded up 9.8% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $41.96 and last traded at $39.60. 163,375,179 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 118% from the average session volume of 74,959,953 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.06.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Williams Trading set a $50.00 target price on Rigetti Computing in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on Rigetti Computing from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Rigetti Computing in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Alliance Global Partners reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rigetti Computing currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $28.29.

Rigetti Computing Price Performance

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $27.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.45. The stock has a market cap of $12.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.11 and a beta of 1.60.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.01. Rigetti Computing had a negative net margin of 2,134.92% and a negative return on equity of 29.05%. The company had revenue of $1.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.87 million. Research analysts predict that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Rigetti Computing

In other Rigetti Computing news, Director Helene Gail Sandford sold 62,000 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction on Friday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.89, for a total transaction of $2,783,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 120,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,403,454.19. The trade was a 34.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CTO David Rivas sold 44,355 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.85, for a total transaction of $658,671.75. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 730,568 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,848,934.80. This represents a 5.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 454,204 shares of company stock worth $10,300,876 over the last ninety days. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Rigetti Computing

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Rigetti Computing during the 2nd quarter worth $392,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing in the 2nd quarter valued at $121,000. Cavalier Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing in the 2nd quarter valued at $589,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 176.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,955 shares of the company's stock valued at $521,000 after buying an additional 28,081 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 666.7% in the 2nd quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 11,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.38% of the company's stock.

Rigetti Computing Company Profile

Rigetti Computing, Inc, through its subsidiaries, builds quantum computers and the superconducting quantum processors. The company offers cloud in a form of quantum processing unit, such as 9-qubit chip and Ankaa-2 system under the Novera brand name; and sells access to its quantum computers through quantum computing as a service.

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