Rocket Lab hits record high after MS upgrade

Shares of Rocket Lab Corp RKLB.O rise 6.5% to $96.73 after Morgan Stanley analysts upgraded the space company

RKLB hit an all-time intra-day record high of $99.58 and is on track for biggest daily pct gain since Jan. 6

"RKLB ended 2025 with 21 launches, growing the annual manifest by 5 vs. 2024 (+31%). We expect Electron will launch ~28 missions in 2026 and scale to ~50 missions in 2030," say Morgan Stanley analysts led by Kristine Liwag in an investor note

MS upgraded RKLB to "overweight" from "equal weight" and hiked its PT to $105 from $67

"We see Neutron’s debut as a key catalyst for RKLB in early 2026, with current plans calling for Neutron to reach the pad in 1Q26 and launch shortly thereafter. RKLB is aiming to achieve orbit on the first flight test of its new medium-class rocket, after which the company plans to execute against its early Neutron backlog," Liwag says

Among 17 analysts covering RKLB, avg rating is "buy" and median PT is $72

RKLB is up 42.2% YTD vs Nasdaq Composite Index's .IXIC 1.2% increase