Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) Stock Jumps 13.6% – Here’s What Happened

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) shares were up 13.6% during mid-day trading on Friday. The stock traded as high as $10.98 and last traded at $11.1850. Approximately 6,101,039 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 28,019,080 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.85.

Key Stories Impacting Rigetti Computing

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

• Neutral Sentiment: A preview of Rigetti’s Q3 results highlights Novera orders, pending system deliveries and quantum-performance milestones as indicators investors will watch for commercial progress. These are potential growth drivers, but the article does not report completed deliveries or realized revenue. Rigetti Q3 Earnings: Will Commercial Progress Translate Into Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: A report describes a Rigetti-powered quantum forecasting breakthrough in finance, suggesting a possible real-world use case; the available details do not indicate its commercial scale or financial impact. Rigetti Computing Powered a Quantum Forecasting Breakthrough in Finance
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha analysis downgraded RGTI to Sell, arguing that valuation risk outweighs upside. It cites very high sales multiples, weak gross margins and cash flow, and revenue that can be lumpy because it depends on system deliveries; in its view, investors are already pricing in substantial future growth. Rigetti: The Stock Has Fallen, But Expectations Haven’t (Rating Downgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: Options-market coverage calls RGTI a potential target for bears, citing a historically bearish signal associated with past pullbacks. Separately, a valuation article questions whether the share price is supported by the company’s book value. Signal Says This Quantum Name Is a Prime Play for Bears Rigetti Computing Stock Trades at a Premium to Book Value

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on RGTI. B. Riley Financial reduced their target price on shares of Rigetti Computing from $35.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Rigetti Computing from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Rigetti Computing from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Wedbush began coverage on Rigetti Computing in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Rigetti Computing has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.56.

Rigetti Computing Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $14.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a PE ratio of -12.53 and a beta of 2.15.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last announced its 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). The firm had revenue of $5.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.09 million. Rigetti Computing had a negative return on equity of 17.50% and a negative net margin of 2,189.54%. Analysts expect that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Rigetti Computing news, CTO Andrew Bestwick sold 5,791 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $97,346.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 1,036,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,417,194.01. This trade represents a 0.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Jeffrey A. Bertelsen sold 25,000 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $375,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,521,005. This trade represents a 12.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 163,689 shares of company stock valued at $2,570,890. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rigetti Computing

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Burr Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing in the third quarter worth about $6,181,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Rigetti Computing by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,297,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,216,000 after buying an additional 174,126 shares in the last quarter. Encore Global Management LP bought a new position in shares of Rigetti Computing during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,685,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 47.7% during the 1st quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 326,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,587,000 after acquiring an additional 105,494 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in Rigetti Computing in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,019,000. Institutional investors own 35.38% of the company’s stock.

About Rigetti Computing

Rigetti Computing, Inc is a quantum computing company that develops full-stack quantum computing systems based on superconducting quantum processors. Its technology is designed to support research and commercial applications that may benefit from quantum computing, including optimization, simulation, machine learning and complex data analysis.

The company develops quantum processing units, quantum computers and related control systems, software and cloud services. Its Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services platform provides access to Rigetti quantum systems through the cloud, while its hardware offerings are intended for use by enterprises, government organizations, academic institutions and other research customers.

Founded in 2013 by Chad Rigetti, the company is headquartered in Berkeley, California, and operates its own quantum chip fabrication facility, known as Fab-1.