Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $124.77, but opened at $132.76. Rocket Lab shares last traded at $129.9480, with a volume of 8,947,762 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Rocket Lab in a research report on Friday, March 13th. New Street Research assumed coverage on Rocket Lab in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on Rocket Lab from $60.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research downgraded Rocket Lab from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Rocket Lab from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.19.

Rocket Lab Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $78.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.85. The company has a quick ratio of 4.02, a current ratio of 4.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.08 billion, a PE ratio of -402.92 and a beta of 2.30.

Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.07). The company had revenue of $200.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.65 million. Rocket Lab had a negative net margin of 26.87% and a negative return on equity of 11.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 63.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.12) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Rocket Lab Corporation will post -0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Lab

In other news, Director Merline Saintil sold 18,126 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $1,360,175.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 261,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,653,201.12. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Peter Beck sold 18,857 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.59, for a total value of $1,312,258.63. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 884,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,523,475.15. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 333,449 shares of company stock valued at $28,295,233 in the last quarter. 8.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sara Bay Financial raised its stake in shares of Rocket Lab by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 15,905 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $1,121,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Rocket Lab by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,458 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Rocket Lab by 7.1% during the first quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Rocket Lab by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,320 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Rocket Lab by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,191 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 71.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rocket Lab Company Profile

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.