Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Stock Price Down 5.9% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) fell 5.9% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $15.93 and last traded at $15.94. 15,032,555 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 32,079,732 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.94.

Rigetti Computing News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Rigetti Computing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rigetti’s reported $541.3 million cash balance and debt-free balance sheet provide financial flexibility to fund quantum-system development, technology investments and its long-term growth roadmap without relying heavily on new financing. Strong Cash Cushion Strengthens Rigetti’s Long-Term Growth Roadmap
• Positive Sentiment: Rigetti and IonQ reportedly delivered strong second-quarter revenue growth and continued advancing their quantum roadmaps. The longer-term opportunity is also supported by expected spending on post-quantum cybersecurity as governments and businesses update encryption standards. RGTI vs IONQ: Which Quantum Computing Stock Led the Q2 Earnings Race?
• Neutral Sentiment: Rigetti created a chief operating officer position, appointed David Rivas as COO and Andrew Bestwick as chief technology officer. The changes could improve operational execution, although the resignation of board member Dr. Ray Johnson adds a degree of leadership-transition uncertainty. Rigetti Computing Reshapes Leadership Team
• Negative Sentiment: Rigetti’s decline largely reflected broader quantum-stock weakness: D-Wave fell after announcing its CFO’s retirement, while other peers also moved lower. The sector remains highly sensitive to news about management, funding and commercialization. D-Wave Sinks as Its CFO Retires; Rigetti Slides
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a key concern. Despite a roughly 7.7-fold three-year return, recent analysis characterizes RGTI as expensive relative to its fundamentals, leaving the stock vulnerable to profit-taking and higher expectations. Rigetti Stock Looks Fully Valued

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wedbush began coverage on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Rigetti Computing from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Rigetti Computing from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.67.

Rigetti Computing Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $17.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.71 and a beta of 1.99.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.05). Rigetti Computing had a negative net margin of 2,189.54% and a negative return on equity of 17.50%. The firm had revenue of $5.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.09 million. As a group, analysts expect that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rigetti Computing

In related news, Director Ray O. Johnson sold 122,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.30, for a total value of $2,602,604.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 171,273 shares in the company, valued at $3,648,114.90. This trade represents a 41.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey A. Bertelsen sold 3,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.89, for a total value of $65,195.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,067 shares in the company, valued at $2,838,651.63. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders sold 725,149 shares of company stock valued at $17,345,425. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rigetti Computing

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Rigetti Computing by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,970,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $796,750,000 after purchasing an additional 3,924,171 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,853,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,997,000 after buying an additional 946,850 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,879,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $174,930,000 after buying an additional 196,891 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 1,861.8% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,414,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,252,000 after buying an additional 7,036,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Rigetti Computing by 90.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,081,174 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,788,000 after buying an additional 1,467,483 shares in the last quarter. 35.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rigetti Computing Company Profile

Rigetti Computing is a pioneering quantum computing company that designs and manufactures superconducting quantum processors alongside a complementary software stack. Founded in 2013 by CEO Chad Rigetti, the company has developed end-to-end quantum systems—from cryogenic hardware to control electronics—to advance the performance and scalability of quantum machines.

At the core of Rigetti’s offering is its Quantum Cloud Services (QCS) platform, which enables developers and enterprises to access quantum processing units (QPUs) and hybrid quantum-classical workflows via the cloud.