Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Stock Price Up 5.1% – Should You Buy?

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) shares rose 5.1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $14.25 and last traded at $14.19. Approximately 25,431,694 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average daily volume of 29,640,166 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Rigetti Computing to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Rigetti Computing in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $30.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, B. Riley Financial upgraded Rigetti Computing from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.70.

Rigetti Computing Trading Up 5.1%

The firm has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.87 and a beta of 1.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.78.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.02. Rigetti Computing had a negative net margin of 3,111.92% and a negative return on equity of 14.91%. The firm had revenue of $1.87 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.33 million. The company’s revenue was down 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rigetti Computing news, CFO Jeffrey A. Bertelsen sold 4,270 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.52, for a total value of $74,810.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 175,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,076,669.68. The trade was a 2.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CTO David Rivas sold 36,719 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.52, for a total value of $643,316.88. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 651,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,421,533.28. The trade was a 5.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Heritage Wealth Advisors lifted its position in Rigetti Computing by 454.3% during the fourth quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 1,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 954 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Rigetti Computing by 138.4% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 707 shares during the period. EFG International AG acquired a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tsfg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 320.5% during the 4th quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 180.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.38% of the company’s stock.

About Rigetti Computing

Rigetti Computing is a pioneering quantum computing company that designs and manufactures superconducting quantum processors alongside a complementary software stack. Founded in 2013 by CEO Chad Rigetti, the company has developed end-to-end quantum systems—from cryogenic hardware to control electronics—to advance the performance and scalability of quantum machines.

At the core of Rigetti’s offering is its Quantum Cloud Services (QCS) platform, which enables developers and enterprises to access quantum processing units (QPUs) and hybrid quantum-classical workflows via the cloud.