Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Stock Price Up 1.6% – Should You Buy?

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Sep 11th, 2026

Shares of Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB – Get Free Report) shot up 1.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $64.89 and last traded at $62.95. 15,253,261 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 23,202,428 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.96.

Key Rocket Lab News

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

Positive Sentiment: Successful 16th Electron launch of 2026: Rocket Lab deployed a confidential customer’s Earth-observation satellite into low Earth orbit, marking the company’s 95th Electron launch overall. The achievement reinforces Electron’s reliability and launch cadence amid constrained global launch capacity, with another commercial mission planned before month-end. Rocket Lab Successfully Launches 16th Electron Mission
Positive Sentiment: Analysts see substantial upside: Raymond James identified two potential growth opportunities for Rocket Lab, while reported analyst targets generally remain well above the current share price. Coverage cited targets ranging from $96 to $135, supporting the bullish view that backlog growth and Rocket Lab’s broader space-systems business could drive a rebound. Why Raymond James Is Betting Big on Rocket Lab
Positive Sentiment: Backlog and strategic opportunities remain growth catalysts: Articles point to a roughly $2.36 billion backlog, more than $1 billion in contracts added since the second quarter began, and a potential transformative acquisition. Rocket Lab’s new IMM Apex space solar cell also expands its addressable market beyond launch services. Rocket Lab Stock Moves on Solar Cell Announcement
Neutral Sentiment: Recent earnings were mixed: Second-quarter revenue reached approximately $234.1 million, up nearly 62% year over year and ahead of estimates, but adjusted earnings per share missed expectations. Investors are balancing strong demand and revenue growth against continued losses.
Negative Sentiment: Neutron remains the key execution risk: Despite record revenue and new contracts, recent coverage says the calendar for Rocket Lab’s larger Neutron rocket has not changed. Delays or uncertainty surrounding this medium-lift vehicle could limit the company’s ability to meet long-term growth expectations. Rocket Lab: A $2.36 Billion Backlog Does Not Remove the Neutron Risk
Negative Sentiment: Valuation and insider selling remain overhangs: RKLB trades at a high speculative valuation while still reporting losses. Reported insider activity shows substantial selling and no purchases over the past six months, which may reinforce investor concerns after the stock’s steep recent decline.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on RKLB. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Friday, July 17th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Berenberg Bank began coverage on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rocket Lab currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.32.

Get Our Latest Research Report on Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 4.98, a current ratio of 5.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $72.33 and a 200 day moving average of $84.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.99 and a beta of 2.60.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by ($0.02). Rocket Lab had a negative net margin of 21.51% and a negative return on equity of 6.48%. The business had revenue of $234.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.62 million. Research analysts anticipate that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Marvin Clevenger sold 15,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.63, for a total value of $1,048,001.13. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 458,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,954,878.12. This represents a 3.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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, CAO Agostino Ricupati sold 669 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.63, for a total value of $46,582.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 26,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,870,470.69. The trade was a 2.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 3,624,371 shares of company stock valued at $312,944,881 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RKLB. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Rocket Lab by 12,984.2% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 96,179,045 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $9,776,600,000 after purchasing an additional 95,443,970 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Rocket Lab in the second quarter valued at about $4,124,970,000. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Rocket Lab by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 16,200,726 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $1,130,172,000 after buying an additional 1,738,623 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the second quarter worth approximately $245,764,000. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Rocket Lab by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,520,223 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $873,411,000 after acquiring an additional 120,652 shares during the last quarter. 71.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Rocket Lab USA, Inc is a space company that provides launch services and space systems for commercial, civil and national security customers. The company develops and operates launch vehicles, spacecraft and satellite components, with activities spanning the design, manufacture and operation of space hardware.

Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is a small-lift orbital launch vehicle designed to deploy small satellites. The company also develops HASTE, a suborbital test vehicle based on Electron technology, and is developing Neutron, a larger reusable launch vehicle intended to support a broader range of missions.