Al Root

Rocket Lab stock has headed to the moon, fueled by revenue growth and growing interest in the space economy.

Shares can keep ascending, according to Wall Street.

Tuesday, Citizens analyst Trevor Walsh upgraded Rocket Lab stock to Buy from Hold, according to FactSet. Citizens didn't immediately respond to a request for the report.

His price target is $85 a share, up about 25% from recent levels. Walsh cited growth in the company's launch, defense, and services business.

Growth hasn't been an issue for Rocket Lab. Sales topped $600 million in 2025, up 38% compared with 2025. Sales in 2026 are expected to hit $850 million, up 41%. Wall Street expects $1.2 billion in 2027 sales, the first year Rocket Lab is expected to produce positive earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, or Ebitda.

Rocket Lab stock was down 0.6% in premarket trading Tuesday at $67.28, while S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.5% and 0.4%, respectively.

The stock might not be getting a bump because of the starting point. Coming into Tuesday trading, Rocket Lab stock was up almost 300% over the past 12 months. The company's own performance certainly helped, so has rising interest in space.

President Donald Trump's $1.5 trillion defense budget request for fiscal year 2027 includes $71.2 billion for the Space Force, up 77% year over year. The Artemis II mission, which launched on Apr. 1, set a distance record for human travel from Earth on Monday afternoon. And SpaceX, currently valued at about $1.3 trillion, is targeting a midyear IPO that could value the company at up to $2 trillion.

Rocket Lab is currently valued at about $45 billion, or 53 times estimated 2026 sales.

It's a rich multiple, but Walsh's view isn't out of the consensus. Overall, 75% of analysts covering the stock rate it Buy, according to FactSet. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 typically ranges from 55% to 60%. The average analyst price target for Rocket Lab stock is about $88, up about 30% from recent levels.

At $88, Rocket Lab would be valued at about 67 times 2026 sales or about 80 times Ebitda expected in 2030.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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April 07, 2026 08:06 ET (12:06 GMT)

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