Rocket Lab (RKLB -7.71%) stock stumbled 8.2% through 11:30 a.m. ET Wednesday, giving back some of its mammoth 30% gain from Tuesday, a gain arising from investor enthusiasm over newly inaugurated President Trump's own excitement about using U.S. companies to send astronauts to Mars.
Rocket Lab: Buy On Rockets And Space Systems Boom
Shares of Rocket Lab USA (RKLB 28.44%) are flying on Tuesday. The stock is up 28.3% as of 2 p.m.
SpaceX wrapped up 2024 with a record 138 rocket launches, including test flights of its Starship mega-rocket. Although SpaceX lost its second stage this time, in the company's first test flight of 2025, Starship's Super Heavy booster successfully launched and then returned for a chopsticks "landing" at SpaceX's Mechazilla launch-and-landing tower.
Rocket Lab is rapidly scaling its operations, with strong momentum in both launch services and space systems, supported by a growing $1.05 billion backlog. The global space economy is set to triple by 2035, and Rocket Lab is well-positioned to benefit from rising investments in space. Fundamental analysis and mitigating factors are crucial in understanding RKLB's potential and future growth prospects.
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin just made headlines by finally launching its New Glenn rocket after numerous failures, joining SpaceX in this new frontier of private space travel.
NASA wants to go to Mars again -- and this time, bring back rocks.
Had Rocket Lab (RKLB -1.65%) stock provided a similar performance to the 47% climb it logged in 2023, investors probably would've been pretty happy. Turns out, however, that shares of the launch services provider fared considerably better and soared into the stratosphere, leaving shareholders downright ecstatic with its performance.
In the most recent trading session, Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (RKLB) closed at $26.91, indicating a -1.64% shift from the previous trading day.
Investors interested in RKLB stock should wait for a better entry point, considering its premium valuation.
Rocket Lab's backlog expanded 80% YoY, with ~50% expected to convert to revenue within 12 months. It achieved 16 successful Electron launches in 2024, with average revenue per launch jumping to $7.5M. Q3-24 revenue reached $105M, driven by scaling production and space system segment growth (+80% YoY backlog).
Are space stocks just momentum stocks? It kind of felt that way in 2024, as shares of Rocket Lab (RKLB -0.70%) and AST SpaceMobile (ASTS -1.39%) both roughly quadrupled, and Planet Labs (PL -4.14%) nearly doubled.