Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Stock Price Down 4.8% – Here’s What Happened

Posted by Francis Steltz on Sep 18th, 2026

Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB – Get Free Report) shares were down 4.8% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $63.79 and last traded at $64.57. Approximately 32,051,523 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 38% from the average session volume of 23,153,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.82.

More Rocket Lab News

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

Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab completed a $1.944 billion equity offering, providing substantial funding for its planned acquisition of Iridium Communications and other strategic initiatives. The company is also advancing testing of its Neutron rocket, while SpaceX’s reported limits on new Falcon 9 commercial bookings after 2028 could create an opening for Neutron. Rocket Lab Completes $1.94 Billion Equity Offering
Positive Sentiment: Rocket Lab’s proposed acquisition of Iridium cleared an initial FCC hurdle. The transaction, valued at roughly $8 billion to $8.1 billion, is expected to face an Iridium shareholder vote on September 24 and potentially close in mid-2027. Supporters view the deal as expanding Rocket Lab beyond launch services into broader space infrastructure and satellite communications. Rocket Lab Jumps as FCC Clears First Hurdle on Iridium Deal
Neutral Sentiment: The immediate market move appears largely tied to sector rotation rather than a new Rocket Lab-specific operating setback. Other space names, including AST SpaceMobile and Planet Labs, are also declining after a strong recent run, indicating reduced risk appetite across the group. Rocket Lab Slides as Space Names Give Back Gains
Negative Sentiment: NASA selected SpaceX to launch its StarBurst satellite, reinforcing SpaceX’s dominant position in government and commercial launch contracts. The decision raises concerns that Rocket Lab could lose near-term launch opportunities, although the company’s planned Neutron vehicle may eventually compete for larger missions. NASA Hitches Ride with SpaceX for StarBurst Satellite
Negative Sentiment: The equity offering strengthens Rocket Lab’s balance sheet but increases the share count, creating dilution for existing investors. With the stock still trading at a highly speculative valuation and Neutron yet to enter service, investors remain focused on whether future growth can justify the financing and acquisition costs. Rocket Lab: A Stronger Business Still Has To Grow Into Its Price

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on RKLB. Stifel Nicolaus set a $132.00 target price on Rocket Lab in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 price target on the stock. KGI Securities raised shares of Rocket Lab from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $107.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Rocket Lab from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.32.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $38.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -239.14 and a beta of 2.60. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $69.89 and a 200-day moving average of $84.38.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Frank Klein sold 45,692 shares of the business’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 transaction of $3,181,533.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 961,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $66,934,970.85. The trade was a 4.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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, CFO Adam C. Spice sold 140,157 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.63, for a total transaction of $8,778,032.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,155,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,398,213.21. This trade represents a 10.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 3,536,371 shares of company stock valued at $303,442,641 in the last 90 days. 8.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocket Lab

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Rocket Lab during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rocket Lab during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rocket Lab in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, NBH Bank purchased a new position in shares of Rocket Lab in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

About Rocket Lab

(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.