Needham stated in its note that Rocket Lab’s latest contract win from the Space Development Agency “strongly validates” the company’s position as a “defense prime.”
- The contract win referred to by Needham is for the Tracking Layer Tranche 3 program, valued at $816 million.
- The award, which is the largest in Rocket Lab’s history, more than doubles the company’s space segment backlog, Needham added.
- The firm also stated that the contract win also validates Rocket Lab’s burgeoning Space Systems segment.
Rocket Lab Corp. (RKLB) shares have soared more than 92% over the past month, but analysts at Needham believe there is more upside in the company’s stock.
According to TheFly, Needham hiked its price target for Rocket Lab to $90 from $63, while maintaining a ‘Buy’ rating. The firm’s latest price target for the RKLB stock implies an upside of more than 16% from the closing price on Monday.
Rocket Lab shares were down over 5% in Tuesday’s pre-market trade after closing 10% higher on Monday. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the company trended in the ‘bullish’ territory. RKLB was the third most trending ticker on the Stocktwits platform at the time of writing.
‘Defense Prime’
Needham stated in its note that Rocket Lab’s latest contract win from the Space Development Agency “strongly validates” the company’s position as a “defense prime.”
The contract the firm refers to is for the Tracking Layer Tranche 3 (TRKT3) program, valued at $816 million. The award, which is the largest in Rocket Lab’s history, more than doubles the company’s space segment backlog, Needham added.
The firm also stated that the contract win also validates Rocket Lab’s burgeoning Space Systems segment.
On Monday, analysts at Stifel hiked their price target for the RKLB stock to $85 from $75, while maintaining a ‘Buy’ rating.
Expanding Electron’s Reach
Rocket Lab stated in an announcement on late Sunday that the company is expanding Electron’s global reach in 2026 with more multi-launch constellation deployments. This includes dedicated missions for domestic civil space and international space agencies in Japan and Europe.
Rocket Lab added that it aims to conduct both suborbital and orbital launches in 2026, with defense applications in hypersonic technology and national security.
Retail Remains Bullish
Retail users on Stocktwits were ‘bullish’ (68/100) about Rocket Lab at the time of writing, with message volumes hovering at ‘extremely high’ levels.
One bullish user expects RKLB stock to rise to $85 on Tuesday, urging investors not to be fazed by the post-market decline the previous day.
Another user stated that the post-market decline is an “over-reaction.”
RKLB stock is up 204% year-to-date and 212% over the past 12 months.
For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.<
