Why Rocket Lab (RKLB) Stock Is Trading Up Today

What Happened?

Shares of aerospace and defense company Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB) jumped 4.3% in the afternoon session after several analysts upgraded the stock or raised their price targets, following the company's first successful launch of 2026. 

The positive sentiment included an upgrade from Morgan Stanley, which moved the stock to 'Overweight' and raised its price target to $105. In addition, Bank of America reiterated its 'buy' rating while increasing its price target to $120. TD Cowen also maintained a 'buy' rating and boosted its target price to $100. This wave of analyst confidence followed the company's 80th Electron mission, which marked its first launch of the year and successfully deployed two satellites for Open Cosmos.

After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $90.21, up 2.5% from previous close.

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What Is The Market Telling Us

Rocket Lab’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 75 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 9 days ago when the stock gained 4.5% on the news that Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated its "Overweight" rating on the stock, calling the company the premier alternative to SpaceX. 

The firm’s positive view was based on the company's strong performance, which included a record-breaking third quarter. Additionally, Rocket Lab had secured a significant contract from the U.S. Space Development Agency. This bullish stance from the analyst firm followed these key operational successes, reinforcing investor confidence in the company's market position and future growth prospects.

Rocket Lab is up 18.7% since the beginning of the year, and at $90.21 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $96.30 from January 2026. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Rocket Lab’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $8,626.

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