Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Trading Up 3.6% – Still a Buy?

Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB)’s stock price shot up 3.6% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $88.84 and last traded at $87.90. 22,006,414 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 30,414,465 shares. The stock had previously closed at $84.85.

Rocket Lab News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Defense engagement: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited Rocket Lab’s headquarters as part of an “Arsenal of Freedom” tour, signaling stronger Pentagon interest in the private space sector and validating Rocket Lab’s defense-facing push. Hegseth Visits Rocket Lab On ‘Arsenal Of Freedom’ Tour
• Positive Sentiment: Investor praise and buy-case coverage: The Motley Fool included RKLB in pieces highlighting it as one of the “Smartest Space Stocks” and explaining the recent 65%+ rally, pointing to successful missions and a major U.S. Space Force deal as momentum drivers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Sector thesis and defense tailwinds: Commentary (Seeking Alpha, Money Morning) highlights Rocket Lab’s growing role in medium‑lift launches (Neutron progress) and defense contracting, which supports a bullish growth-and-contract narrative for 2026. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/media attention and buy/sell debate: Several outlets note the share run and ask whether RKLB is still a buy, keeping RKLB in the spotlight and supporting liquidity but also inviting profit‑taking discussion. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data appears noisy/erroneous: A January short‑interest posting shows zero shares / NaN change and a 0.0-day ratio — the data is unreliable as reported, so it provides no clear bearish pressure signal. (May temper interpretation of sentiment flows.)
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional trimming: SG Americas Securities and MorganRosel Wealth Management reportedly reduced/cut stakes in RKLB, which can weigh on stock if larger funds continue trimming into the rally. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Another institutional reduction: MorganRosel Wealth Management trimmed its position, reinforcing that some institutions are taking profits or rebalancing after the big late‑2025/early‑2026 run. Read More.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Rocket Lab from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Rocket Lab in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Rocket Lab from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Rocket Lab from $63.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Rocket Lab to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.25.

Rocket Lab Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $46.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -231.32 and a beta of 2.16. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.18 and a quick ratio of 2.83.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $155.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $152.45 million. Rocket Lab had a negative return on equity of 27.26% and a negative net margin of 35.64%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 48.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.10) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Lab

In other news, Director Nina Armagno sold 27,314 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.21, for a total value of $1,863,087.94. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 108,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,430,797.40. The trade was a 20.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Adam C. Spice sold 1,365,665 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.50, for a total transaction of $103,107,707.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,359,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,647,384. This represents a 50.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,197,650 shares of company stock valued at $262,429,052. 11.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RKLB. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Rocket Lab by 176.1% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 12,125,910 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $580,952,000 after buying an additional 7,734,788 shares during the period. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new position in Rocket Lab in the 2nd quarter valued at $192,918,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Rocket Lab during the 2nd quarter valued at $164,751,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Rocket Lab by 67.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,242,304 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $223,287,000 after purchasing an additional 2,504,054 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Rocket Lab by 5.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,809,723 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $2,003,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,127,565 shares during the period. 71.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab is an aerospace company that provides launch services, spacecraft, and space systems for commercial and government customers. The company’s primary launch vehicle is Electron, a small-lift orbital rocket designed to deploy small satellites and rideshare payloads to low Earth orbit. Rocket Lab also develops and manufactures the Rutherford engine, noted for its electric-pump-fed design and additive-manufactured components, which powers Electron and supports the company’s propulsion capabilities.