MW Rocket Lab's stock has surged to record highs - here's why

By James Rogers

The space-launch company's stock hit an all-time intraday high and a record closing high

Shares of Rocket Lab Corp. hit an all-time intraday high of $45.48 Tuesday, boosted by Citi's raised price target for the space-launch company.

The intraday high is based on available data back to Nov. 16, 2020, Dow Jones Market Data show. Rocket Lab's stock (RKLB) also registered a record closing high of $44.60, its second such record high in two days.

In a note released Monday, Citi raised its share-price target to $50 from $33, with analyst Jason Gursky citing Rocket Lab's revenue potential through 2029 versus 2027. "We believe that period better reflects a more mature state of the company's business model," he wrote. "In that period, we expect revenue to grow to roughly $2.6 [billion] driven by 20 Neutron launches per year and further satellite construction wins, particularly for U.S. government programs."

Set against this backdrop, Rocket Lab's stock ended Tuesday's session up 3.2%, after ending Monday's session up 10.7%.

Last month KeyBanc Capital Markets raised its Rocket Lab price target to $40 from $29. KeyBanc cited strong growth momentum in Rocket Lab's launch services and space systems, the company's M&A strategy and its new Neutron rocket, which is expected to reach the launch pad later this year.

The Long Beach, Calif.-based company has emerged as something of a darling among space stocks, boosted by strong performance in recent years. Rocket Lab has completed a slew of successful launches in the last few months. Last month the company successfully launched its 68th Electron rocket, which deployed a single satellite into space for a confidential commercial customer.

Andrew Chanin, CEO of Procure AM, issuer of the Procure Space ETF UFO, which has Rocket Lab as one of its top holdings, told MarketWatch that the company has been making significant progress. Chanin pointed, in particular, to Rocket Lab's "multiple consecutive successful launches," as well as the cadence of its recent activity. The company's 68th launch of an Electron rocket, for example, was the second of two from the same launch site in less than 48 hours, a new record for Rocket Lab. "It's great for them to be able to show quick turnaround," he said.

"There's still a lot of excitement out there for Neutron - there's a lot of hopes that Neutron will be this major next milestone for the company, and one that will allow them to take on bigger contracts to get larger payloads to space," Chanin said.

Shares of the SpaceX rival also received a recent boost amid the clash between U.S. President Donald Trump and SpaceX Chief Elon Musk, who had been a close Trump ally and adviser since the 2014 election campaign.

"There's still a lot of uncertainty as far as where SpaceX will be in relation to government and commercial contracts in the U.S., as well as overseas," said Chanin. "If the government decides that they want to further separate themselves from Elon Musk, there's only so many providers out there."

Rocket Lab shares are up 75.1% in 2025. The S&P 500 index SPX has gained 6.4%.

-James Rogers

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July 15, 2025 17:10 ET (21:10 GMT)

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