William Blair Issues Pessimistic Outlook for RCKT Earnings

Key Points

• William Blair has lowered its earnings per share estimate for Rocket Pharmaceuticals to ($0.41) for Q3 2026, down from a previous estimate of ($0.38).
• Rocket Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly earnings miss, posting ($0.59) EPS compared to the consensus estimate of ($0.57).
• Insider selling activity has increased, with key executives reducing their shareholdings, raising concerns about the company's outlook.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RCKT - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at William Blair reduced their Q3 2026 earnings estimates for shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, August 20th. William Blair analyst S. Corwin now forecasts that the biotechnology company will earn ($0.41) per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of ($0.38). The consensus estimate for Rocket Pharmaceuticals' current full-year earnings is ($2.83) per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Rocket Pharmaceuticals' Q4 2026 earnings at ($0.54) EPS and FY2026 earnings at ($1.60) EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on RCKT. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from $12.00 to $5.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals from $51.00 to $19.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Chardan Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 target price on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $16.73.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.4%

NASDAQ RCKT traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3.38. 1,351,944 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,718,355. Rocket Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $2.19 and a 52-week high of $22.01. The firm has a market cap of $364.16 million, a PE ratio of -1.34 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 6.39 and a quick ratio of 6.39.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:RCKT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by ($0.02). During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.74) EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Rocket Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 94.4% in the 2nd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 12,202 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 5,926 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals by 7,818.1% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 13,540 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 13,369 shares in the last quarter. Corton Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.39% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonathan David Schwartz sold 11,161 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total value of $33,706.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 224,094 shares of the company's stock, valued at $676,763.88. This represents a 4.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Martin Wilson sold 12,109 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.02, for a total value of $36,569.18. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 137,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at $413,903.08. The trade was a 8.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 36,927 shares of company stock worth $111,413. 24.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Rocket Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a late-stage biotechnology company that focuses on developing gene therapies for rare and devastating diseases. It has three clinical-stage ex vivo lentiviral vector programs for fanconi anemia, a genetic defect in the bone marrow that reduces production of blood cells or promotes the production of faulty blood cells; leukocyte adhesion deficiency-I, a genetic disorder that causes the immune system to malfunction; and pyruvate kinase deficiency, a rare red blood cell autosomal recessive disorder that results in chronic non-spherocytic hemolytic anemia.