Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Stock Rating Reaffirmed as “Buy” by TD Cowen

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by TD Cowen in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $90.00 price objective on the rocket manufacturer’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 77.03% from the stock’s current price.

RKLB has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays began coverage on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Friday, July 17th. KGI Securities raised shares of Rocket Lab from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $107.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, July 27th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Rocket Lab from $135.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.05.

Rocket Lab Trading Down 8.0%

Shares of RKLB stock traded down $4.41 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $50.84. 23,838,969 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,101,795. The firm has a market cap of $30.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -188.29 and a beta of 2.93. Rocket Lab has a fifty-two week low of $37.57 and a fifty-two week high of $151.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 4.98 and a current ratio of 5.48. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.06.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $234.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $231.62 million. Rocket Lab had a negative return on equity of 6.48% and a negative net margin of 21.51%. Equities analysts anticipate that Rocket Lab will post -0.20 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Rocket Lab news, insider Marvin Clevenger sold 15,051 shares of Rocket Lab stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.63, for a total transaction of $1,048,001.13. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 458,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,954,878.12. The trade was a 3.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Frank Klein sold 45,692 shares of Rocket Lab stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.63, for a total transaction of $3,181,533.96. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 961,295 shares in the company, valued at $66,934,970.85. This represents a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 400,749 shares of company stock worth $26,964,474. Company insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocket Lab

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Rocket Lab during the 2nd quarter worth $4,124,970,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Rocket Lab during the 2nd quarter worth $245,764,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Rocket Lab during the 2nd quarter worth $437,280,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Rocket Lab by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,737,451 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $278,262,000 after acquiring an additional 352,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in Rocket Lab by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,180,748 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $221,673,000 after acquiring an additional 396,639 shares during the last quarter. 71.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Rocket Lab

Here are the key news stories impacting Rocket Lab this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab continues to benefit from strong existing operations, including its Electron launch business, satellite systems activities and defense contracts. The company reported record second-quarter revenue of approximately $234 million, up 62% year over year, and maintains a backlog of roughly $2.36 billion. Rocket Lab Still Has a $2.4B Backlog While Neutron Waits
• Positive Sentiment: Despite reducing estimates, several analysts remain bullish. Citizens JMP lowered its target to $90 from $130 but retained a Market Outperform rating; TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating and $90 target, while Cantor Fitzgerald and Roth Capital also remained constructive. Rocket Lab analyst coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Management said the manufacturing issue has been addressed and that additional testing is expected before a launch date is finalized. The company is prioritizing reliability and quality, but investors must now wait longer for evidence that Neutron can expand Rocket Lab into the larger medium-lift launch market. Rocket Lab discusses Neutron program update and manufacturing challenges
• Negative Sentiment: The delay is especially damaging because Neutron is central to Rocket Lab’s growth and planned path toward adjusted EBITDA profitability. Repeated schedule slips are increasing execution concerns, extending cash-burn risk and postponing potential launch revenue. Rocket Lab pushes Neutron rocket debut flight to 2027
• Negative Sentiment: Technical momentum has also weakened after the sell-off pushed RKLB below the closely watched $60 support level and below its major moving averages. Although Wall Street’s consensus remains broadly positive, lower price targets and renewed skepticism have added pressure to the stock.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

Rocket Lab USA, Inc is a space and launch company that provides launch services, spacecraft, satellite components and other space systems for commercial, civil and national-security customers. The company designs and manufactures many of its products in-house, supporting missions from initial spacecraft development through launch and on-orbit operations.

Rocket Lab’s primary launch vehicle is Electron, a small-lift rocket designed to place satellites into low Earth orbit. The company also operates the HASTE suborbital test platform for hypersonic and other advanced aerospace technologies and is developing Neutron, a larger reusable rocket intended to serve commercial and government missions.