Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) Trading 9.7% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:RKLB) were up 9.7% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $32.70 and last traded at $31.71. Approximately 29,577,553 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 76% from the average daily volume of 16,757,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.92.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on RKLB shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $29.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Rocket Lab USA in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Rocket Lab USA from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Roth Capital raised their target price on Rocket Lab USA from $25.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Rocket Lab USA from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.18.

Rocket Lab USA Stock Up 4.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The company has a market capitalization of $13.73 billion, a PE ratio of -82.38 and a beta of 2.08. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.68.

Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.02). Rocket Lab USA had a negative net margin of 51.76% and a negative return on equity of 39.47%. The company had revenue of $122.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $120.74 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.09) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 32.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Rocket Lab USA, Inc. will post -0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rocket Lab USA

In related news, insider Arjun Kampani sold 5,277 shares of Rocket Lab USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.97, for a total value of $158,151.69. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 569,606 shares in the company, valued at $17,071,091.82. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Frank Klein sold 1,835 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.93, for a total transaction of $36,571.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,417,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,253,644.92. This represents a 0.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 136,937 shares of company stock worth $3,285,279. 13.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Rocket Lab USA

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Rocket Lab USA in the fourth quarter valued at $17,261,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Rocket Lab USA by 26.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 166,369 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $4,237,000 after acquiring an additional 35,293 shares during the last quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Rocket Lab USA by 66.7% during the 4th quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 25,000 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $637,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in Rocket Lab USA during the fourth quarter worth about $1,281,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Rocket Lab USA during the fourth quarter worth about $288,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

About Rocket Lab USA

Rocket Lab USA, Inc, a space company, provides launch services and space systems solutions for the space and defense industries. The company provides launch services, spacecraft design services, spacecraft components, spacecraft manufacturing, and other spacecraft and on-orbit management solutions; and constellation management services, as well as designs and manufactures small and medium-class rockets.