Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab Corporation describes itself as an end-to-end space company that sells launch services, spacecraft design services, spacecraft components, spacecraft manufacturing, optical systems and on-orbit management. It reports two segments, launch services and space systems.^[1]

Rocket Lab's Electron rocket, first launched in 2017, had delivered over 200 spacecraft to orbit across 75 successful missions through December 31, 2025. Rocket Lab states that Electron was the second most frequently launched orbital rocket in 2025.^[1]

Rocket Lab launches Electron from a private launch complex in Mahia, New Zealand, whose two pads are described as capable of supporting up to 120 missions every year. A dedicated pad at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia is currently licensed to launch 8 missions per year.^[1]

Rocket Lab says a bilateral treaty between the United States and New Zealand governments lets it use U.S. launch and spacecraft technology at the New Zealand complex, which would otherwise not be permitted from foreign soil.^[1]

Rocket Lab is developing Neutron, a reusable launch vehicle that it anticipates will carry approximately 13,000 kg to low Earth orbit in its reusable configuration.^[1]

In its second-quarter 2026 earnings release, Rocket Lab said production of the first-stage tank was aligned with a target to deliver Neutron to the launch pad in the fourth quarter of 2026.^[2]

Rocket Lab's space systems business sells spacecraft and components including reaction wheels, star trackers, radios, solar power systems and space-grade batteries, and the company reported flight hardware on over 1,800 missions as of December 31, 2025.^[1]

Rocket Lab reported revenue of $601.8 million for 2025, compared with $436.2 million in 2024 and $244.6 million in 2023. Rocket Lab's year-on-year revenue increase in 2025 was approximately 38%.^[1]

Rocket Lab reported record second-quarter 2026 revenue of $234 million, up 62% from a year earlier. The same release put backlog at $2.36 billion, a 137% increase year over year. Rocket Lab said its total launch backlog stood at 90+ launches, the highest in its history.^[2]

Rocket Lab's corporate headquarters today is in Long Beach, California, according to its annual report.^[3],[1]

Rocket Lab's predecessor, Rocket Lab USA, Inc., implemented a holding company reorganization on May 23, 2025, and Rocket Lab Corporation became the successor issuer.^[1]

Rocket Lab built its space systems business largely by acquisition, buying Sinclair Interplanetary in April 2020, Advanced Solutions, Incorporated in October 2021, Planetary Systems Corporation in November 2021, SolAero Technologies Corp. in January 2022 and GEOST LLC in August 2025.^[1]

On June 2, 2023, Rocket Lab closed an asset purchase from Virgin Orbit Holdings, Inc. that included a property lease in Long Beach, California, and production assets, machinery and equipment.^[1]

Rocket Lab closed its acquisition of GEOST LLC on August 12, 2025. Rocket Lab paid $132.4 million in cash for GEOST.^[1]

TechCrunch reported that Rocket Lab bought a precision component manufacturer in February 2026, laser communications provider Mynaric in April and space robotics company Motiv in May. Rocket Lab's second-quarter release says the Mynaric and Motiv acquisitions have closed. The sources reviewed for this profile do not state prices for these three deals.^[4],[2]

Rocket Lab agreed on June 28, 2026 to acquire Iridium Communications. TechCrunch reported that the deal values the satellite operator at $8 billion, or $54 per share.^[5],[4]

Iridium stockholders approved the transaction on September 24, 2026, with 99.6% of the votes cast in favor, and Iridium expects it to be completed by mid-2027, subject to remaining regulatory approvals and closing conditions.^[5]

Rocket Lab became a public company through a merger with the special purpose acquisition company Vector Acquisition Corporation, completed on August 25, 2021. Rocket Lab's common stock trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol RKLB.^[1]

When the deal was announced in March 2021, TechCrunch reported a pro forma enterprise value of $4.1 billion, a total cash balance of $750 million at closing and a $470 million PIPE. Existing Rocket Lab shareholders were to retain 82% of the combined company's equity at close.^[3]

Rocket Lab had 575,767,300 shares of common stock outstanding as of March 30, 2026, according to its proxy statement.^[6]

Founder Peter Beck beneficially owned 46,443,180 shares, equal to 7.5% of voting power, on that date. Of those shares, 45,951,250 are Series A Preferred Stock held by Equatorial Trust, a family trust established by Beck.^[6]

Rocket Lab's annual report says holders of the preferred stock can elect at least one director, and the proxy statement lists Beck as the Series A Preferred Stock Director and Chairman.^[1],[6]

Entities affiliated with Khosla Ventures held 34,888,272 shares, or 6.1%. Entities affiliated with BlackRock, Inc. held 30,222,153 shares, or 5.2%. All directors and executive officers as a group held 52,394,596 shares, or 8.4%.^[6]

At December 31, 2025, Rocket Lab had cash and cash equivalents of $828.7 million and $270.2 million invested in marketable securities.^[1]

Rocket Lab says it has historically funded its cash needs through private sales of equity securities, convertible senior notes, credit and equipment financing facilities, proceeds from the Business Combination, at-the-market equity offerings and customer payments.^[1]

This profile gives no current market capitalization, because the SEC filings and press reports reviewed for it do not state one.^[1]

Rocket Lab's named executive officers for 2025 were Peter Beck, founder, president and chief executive officer; Adam Spice, chief financial officer; Arjun Kampani, senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary; and Frank Klein, chief operations officer. Beck also serves as chairman, according to the annual report.^[6],[1]

Rocket Lab's other continuing directors named in the proxy statement are Nina Armagno, Jon Olson, Kenneth Possenriede, Merline Saintil and Alex Slusky. Saintil is the lead independent director, and Possenriede is a former chief financial officer of Lockheed Martin.^[6]

Rocket Lab had over 2,600 full-time permanent employees worldwide as of December 31, 2025.^[1]

Rocket Lab names the U.S. Department of War, NASA, DARPA and the National Reconnaissance Office among its government launch customers, and commercial customers including Blacksky Holdings, Canon, Kinéis, Capella Space, Planet, OHB Group and Synspective.^[1]

Rocket Lab's top five customers accounted for approximately 49% of its 2025 revenue. Its top five backlog customers accounted for approximately 77% of backlog at year end.^[1]

Rocket Lab said it was awarded a $397 million contract, including options, to deliver multiple Flatellite spacecraft for the U.S. Space Force's Space-Based Airborne Moving Target Indicator program.^[2]

Rocket Lab also reported awards of more than $160 million across two contracts to build three geostationary satellites, including a prime contract with the Space Force's Space Systems Command.^[2]

Rocket Lab reported more than $437 million in new launch contracts across Electron, HASTE and Neutron, including options and post-quarter signings.^[2]