Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) Shares Up 3.2% – Still a Buy?

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:RKLB) shares traded up 3.2% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $23.78 and last traded at $23.74. 7,834,000 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 11,825,741 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $13.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $5.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $7.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.50.

Rocket Lab USA Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $14.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.54. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $11.56 billion, a PE ratio of -64.16 and a beta of 1.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rocket Lab USA news, General Counsel Arjun Kampani sold 28,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.15, for a total transaction of $689,772.30. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 608,996 shares in the company, valued at $14,707,253.40. The trade was a 4.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Matthew Ocko sold 2,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.73, for a total transaction of $35,460,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,351,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,685,623.55. This represents a 45.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,064,530 shares of company stock worth $37,018,400. Insiders own 13.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rocket Lab USA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RKLB. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 153.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 380,965 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock worth $1,567,000 after purchasing an additional 230,931 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 17.7% during the 2nd quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 114,628 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 17,269 shares in the last quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Rocket Lab USA during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 40,180 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 2,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LA Financiere DE L Echiquier lifted its position in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter. LA Financiere DE L Echiquier now owns 1,151,190 shares of the rocket manufacturer’s stock valued at $5,526,000 after buying an additional 98,643 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.