Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Trading Down 8% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Rocket Lab shares fell by 8% on Wednesday, trading down to $48.69 after closing at $52.91, amid a significant increase in trading volume of 30.4 million shares.
• Despite the recent drop, various analysts have issued upbeat ratings and price target increases for Rocket Lab, with price targets ranging from $50 to $55 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Rocket Lab's recent earnings report showed a revenue of $144.5 million, surpassing expectations, although the company reported a negative earnings per share of ($0.13).

Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB - Get Free Report) shares fell 8% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $48.43 and last traded at $48.69. 30,488,763 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 49% from the average session volume of 20,470,328 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on RKLB shares. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Rocket Lab from $35.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Rocket Lab in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Rocket Lab from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price target (up from $33.00) on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rocket Lab has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $42.27.

Rocket Lab Stock Down 8.0%

The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $23.56 billion, a PE ratio of -108.20 and a beta of 2.17. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $46.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.48.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $144.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $135.42 million. Rocket Lab had a negative net margin of 45.87% and a negative return on equity of 48.14%. Rocket Lab's revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.08) earnings per share. Rocket Lab has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Lab

In other news, insider Frank Klein sold 4,286 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.72, for a total transaction of $204,527.92. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,316,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,799,758.60. The trade was a 0.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Adam C. Spice sold 874,588 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.01, for a total transaction of $41,988,969.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,057,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $98,799,250.89. The trade was a 29.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,406,361 shares of company stock worth $267,483,973 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RKLB. Quantinno Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Rocket Lab in the fourth quarter valued at about $257,000. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the fourth quarter worth about $568,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 682,790 shares of the rocket manufacturer's stock worth $17,391,000 after purchasing an additional 159,642 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab by 911.9% during the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 5,717 shares of the rocket manufacturer's stock worth $150,000 after purchasing an additional 5,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the fourth quarter worth about $4,134,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.78% of the company's stock.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

Rocket Lab USA, Inc, a space company, provides launch services and space systems solutions for the space and defense industries. The company provides launch services, spacecraft design services, spacecraft components, spacecraft manufacturing, and other spacecraft and on-orbit management solutions; and constellation management services, as well as designs and manufactures small and medium-class rockets.

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