LONG BEACH, California, May 13, 2026, 05:02 (PDT)
Rocket Lab Corp’s shares closed at a record on Tuesday, extending a post-earnings rally that has put fresh attention on RKLB stock and the company’s larger Neutron rocket. The stock has climbed more than 40% in two sessions since its first-quarter report, MarketBeat reported.
That matters now because investors are no longer treating Rocket Lab only as a small-launch operator. The company designs and builds rockets, spacecraft, satellite components and software, with launch services and space systems both feeding its revenue base.
There is also a live defense angle. The Congressional Budget Office estimated on Tuesday that the U.S. Golden Dome missile-defense shield could cost about $1.2 trillion over 20 years, while Rocket Lab said last week it had been selected with RTX’s Raytheon to demonstrate capabilities for the Space Force’s Space Based Interceptor program, an orbiting system meant to stop missiles earlier in flight.
Rocket Lab reported first-quarter revenue of $200.3 million, up 63.5% from a year earlier, and backlog of $2.2 billion. The company guided second-quarter revenue at $225 million to $240 million, a step-up that would mark another record if met.
The biggest single booking was a confidential customer order for five Neutron launches and three Electron launches between 2026 and 2029. Rocket Lab said the deal brought its manifest to more than 70 missions, though it did not disclose full financial terms.
Defense work is filling the near-term story as well. Rocket Lab won a $30 million Anduril contract for three HASTE hypersonic test launches from Virginia; HASTE is a suborbital test version of its Electron rocket used for payloads traveling at more than Mach 5. Chief Executive Sir Peter Beck said the vehicle offered “speed, affordability, and reliable hypersonic technology testing,” while Anduril executive Gokul Subramanian called the work “one of the most complex problems in defense.” Rocket Lab Corporation
Wall Street is moving, but not in one direction. TheStreet Pro reported that Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu raised his Rocket Lab price target to $120 from $73 and kept a buy rating, while TipRanks reported that Goldman Sachs analyst Noah Poponak stayed neutral even after lifting his target to $76 from $73.
The competitive bar remains high. Rocket Lab is positioning Neutron as an alternative to SpaceX’s Falcon 9, and BryceTech founder Carissa Christensen told Aerospace America that Neutron is going up against “arguably the most successful launch vehicle ever” and must find clear niches. Aerospace America
But the stock move leaves less room for slips. A filing showed Rocket Lab still posted a net loss of $45.0 million in the first quarter, while backlog is not cash in hand: only about 36% of remaining backlog was expected to be recognized within 12 months, and one government customer accounted for 36% of quarterly revenue.
Prediction markets show the same caution around timing. In a thin Polymarket contract, traders put the chance of a Neutron launch by Dec. 31 at 52%; the market resolves on liftoff from the pad, not on whether the mission later reaches orbit cleanly.
Rocket Lab is also buying more of its supply chain. The company agreed to acquire Motiv Space Systems, a robotics and motion-control supplier, in a deal expected to close in the second quarter if customary conditions are met.
For now, the market is paying for proof. Rocket Lab has contracts, defense exposure and a larger rocket nearly at the center of its equity story. The next move depends less on the rally itself, and more on whether Neutron and the defense backlog turn into repeat revenue without a costly delay.
