Rocket Lab Shares Slip as Space Force Contract Fails to Halt Selloff

Rocket Lab Corp. (NASDAQ: RKLB ) shares are trading lower by more than 9% on Tuesday as traders digest its biggest launch contract news against a risk-off tape. Here’s what investors need to know. Rocket Lab stock is taking a hit today.

What’s pressuring RKLB stock? What Is Rocket Lab’s $266 Million Space Force Contract? S. Space Force contract for 12 suborbital launches, with missions expected to start no earlier than the end of 2026.

Work is slated for the Pacific Spaceport Complex in Alaska and is expected to run through Dec. 31, 2028. The award structure also includes options for six additional HASTE missions (up to 18 total), which keeps the headline number from being the full ceiling on potential launch volume. That optionality matters because it ties incremental upside to follow-on missile-defense testing demand rather than a one-and-done program.

82%. 62), a sign the recent downswing has been sharp enough to break intermediate momentum. MACD is the cleaner momentum lens right now: it’s below its signal line and the histogram is negative, which points to upside pressure fading versus the prior upswing unless buyers can reclaim that baseline. 00), then later printed a swing low in July, and it previously broke below support in December 2025.

That sequence fits the current setup—longer-term uptrend history, but a shorter-term reset that’s still working through overhead supply. 55 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Pro data. Read Also: Kalshi's Flight-Cancellation Betting Is Back— Now Restricted to JFK And Blocked From Anyone Who Could Cause a Crash Image: Shutterstock