Shares of Rocket Lab (RKLB) fell as much as 14% on Thursday after the space company said the first launch of Neutron, its reusable medium-lift rocket, was postponed until 2027. The stock ended Thursday’s session down 6.6%. Rocket Lab had targeted the fourth quarter of 2026 for Neutron’s debut. CEO Peter Beck attributed manufacturing problems in the front booster dome to the rocket’s first stage. “They don’t necessarily mean that the canopy would fail in flight, but our practice is to proceed only when we believe the system has the appropriate margins,” Beck said in a video update, according to Stocktwits. “Possible success is not our standard.” Read more: Wall Street is ‘tired of Bank of Nvidia, Bank of AMD and Bank of Broadcom’: Baird’s Mortonson 55.25 -3.93 (-6.64%) Close: 4:00:00 PM EDT 55.62 +0.37 (+0.67%) After-hours: 4:58:34 PM EDT Beck said the company has identified manufacturing corrections and expects to complete the assemble the first stage within the quarter, when it will be in the best position to announce a launch date. He also highlighted strong demand and upcoming contract announcements. Neutron is critical to Rocket Lab’s effort to compete for larger missions in a market dominated by SpaceX’s (SPCX) Falcon 9. Its schedule has been delayed before: Rocket Lab unveiled the rocket in 2021 with a first flight goal of 2024, then moved it to mid-2025 and then 2026. A first-stage tank ruptured during testing in January. The drop came after a 7.9% drop in Wednesday’s regular session, before Rocket Lab posted the update at 4:40 p.m. ET. If Thursday’s decline holds through the close, it would be Rocket Lab’s lowest close since December 2025. The stock is down about 25% this year and about 65% below its 52-week high of $151, set in May. RocketLab CEO Peter Beck poses for a portrait at the company’s headquarters on June 10, 2015 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Phil Walter/Getty Images) · Phil Walter via Getty Images Space stocks were already under pressure. AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) fell 10% on Wednesday after Piper Sandler cut its price target to $54, citing competition from SpaceX. Rocket Lab is also working to close a deal with satellite operator Iridium (IRDM). Cantor Fitzgerald maintained his Overweight rating and $122 price target on Rocket Lab after the upgrade, according to analyst data from Yahoo Finance. Internal AI tools helped analyze interview transcripts, research, and write this post. This post was reviewed, edited and fact-checked by humans before publication. Click here for an in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events influencing stock prices. Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance.
