Subodh Kulkarni Sells 120,000 Shares of Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Stock

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) CEO Subodh Kulkarni sold 120,000 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.68, for a total transaction of $1,881,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 140,411 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,201,644.48. This represents a 46.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Rigetti Computing Stock Up 0.7%

Rigetti Computing stock opened at $15.27 on Friday. Rigetti Computing, Inc. has a 52-week low of $12.53 and a 52-week high of $58.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.97 and a beta of 2.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.63.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.05). Rigetti Computing had a negative net margin of 2,189.54% and a negative return on equity of 17.50%. The company had revenue of $5.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.09 million. Research analysts expect that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on RGTI. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Rigetti Computing from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Rigetti Computing from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Monday, July 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Rigetti Computing from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rigetti Computing

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 403.2% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 871 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 454.3% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 1,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 954 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Rigetti Computing by 138.4% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, EFG International AG bought a new position in Rigetti Computing during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. 35.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Rigetti Computing

Here are the key news stories impacting Rigetti Computing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rigetti secured a $100 million CHIPS award to expand readout electronics, cryogenic capacity and quantum-chip fabrication. The funding could accelerate production, reduce capital constraints and strengthen Rigetti’s position in the U.S. quantum-computing supply chain. Rigetti Secures $100 Million CHIPS Award to Advance Quantum Scaling
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s second-quarter revenue increased 185% year over year to approximately $5.1 million. An $8.4 million quantum-system order from India is expected to contribute revenue in the fourth quarter, supporting the possibility of stronger near-term growth. Prediction: Rigetti’s Revenue Passes $50 Million a Year Before 2029
• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Commerce Department is reportedly considering up to $300 million in minority equity investments across Rigetti, D-Wave and Quantinuum. A direct government investment could improve Rigetti’s balance sheet and provide additional validation for its technology, although final terms and allocation remain uncertain. Uncle Sam’s Quantum Leap: Feds Fund a $300M Quantum Supercycle
• Neutral Sentiment: A report listed Rigetti’s September short interest at zero shares and a zero-day short-interest ratio. Because the figures conflict with the report’s description of increased short interest, they provide little reliable insight into RGTI’s trading outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Subodh Kulkarni sold 120,000 shares for about $1.9 million, reducing his direct ownership by 46.08%. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, which makes it a less definitive bearish signal, but the substantial reduction in insider ownership may still pressure investor sentiment. Rigetti CEO Sells Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Rigetti remains unprofitable, reporting a quarterly loss of $0.05 per share, with analysts expecting a full-year loss. Higher interest-rate expectations also tend to hurt speculative, long-duration companies such as RGTI by increasing financing pressure and reducing the value investors place on future growth.

About Rigetti Computing

Rigetti Computing, Inc is a quantum computing company that develops full-stack quantum computing systems based on superconducting qubit technology. The company designs and manufactures quantum processors, develops the software needed to program and operate them, and provides access to its systems through cloud-based services.

Rigetti’s offerings include its quantum processing units and integrated quantum computing systems, as well as the Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services platform. Through cloud access and partnerships, organizations can experiment with quantum algorithms and explore potential applications in areas such as optimization, simulation, machine learning and other computationally intensive fields.