Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) Shares Up 4.1% - Should You Buy?

Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:RKLB - Get Free Report) traded up 4.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $27.96 and last traded at $27.69. 7,699,242 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 12,205,370 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.60.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on RKLB. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Rocket Lab USA from $13.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Rocket Lab USA from $13.50 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Rocket Lab USA from $10.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. JMP Securities started coverage on Rocket Lab USA in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised Rocket Lab USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Five research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $17.44.

Rocket Lab USA Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $19.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $14.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -76.86 and a beta of 1.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 transaction 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 represents a 8.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Matthew Ocko sold 2,000,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.73, for a total transaction of $35,460,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,351,135 shares in the company, valued at $41,685,623.55. The trade was 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 2,114,530 shares of company stock valued at $38,168,400. 13.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rocket Lab USA

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Rocket Lab USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Amalgamated Bank grew its position in Rocket Lab USA by 26.7% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 12,038 shares of the rocket manufacturer's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 2,538 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Rocket Lab USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $67,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Rocket Lab USA during the 2nd quarter worth $76,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Rocket Lab USA by 97.8% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 20,230 shares of the rocket manufacturer's stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. 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.