Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:RKLB) gapped down before the market opened on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $19.83, but opened at $16.36. Rocket Lab USA shares last traded at $18.82, with a volume of 9,890,900 shares changing hands.

The rocket manufacturer reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $132.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.58 million. Rocket Lab USA had a negative net margin of 51.76% and a negative return on equity of 39.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on RKLB shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Rocket Lab USA from $13.50 to $22.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Rocket Lab USA from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $7.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Rocket Lab USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $22.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.28.

Insider Activity

In other Rocket Lab USA news, Director Alexander R. Slusky sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total value of $1,150,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 534,675 shares in the company, valued at $12,297,525. This trade represents a 8.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Nina Armagno sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total transaction of $236,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 132,294 shares in the company, valued at $3,126,107.22. This represents a 7.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 13.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocket Lab USA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 39.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 83,547 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $813,000 after buying an additional 23,504 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Rocket Lab USA by 934.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 98,176 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $10,090,000 after acquiring an additional 88,686 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Rocket Lab USA by 1,827.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 9,484 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 8,992 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Rocket Lab USA by 33.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 131,076 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 32,618 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaCentric Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rocket Lab USA in the third quarter valued at $146,000. Institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

Rocket Lab USA Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $9.75 billion, a P/E ratio of -51.20 and a beta of 1.99. 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’s 50-day moving average price is $26.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.71.

Rocket Lab USA Company Profile

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.