ASTS, RKLB Stocks In The Spotlight On Wall Street Backing Amid Billion-Dollar Backlogs

• ASTS maintained its full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $150 million to $200 million.
• Piper Sandler trimmed its price target on ASTS to $98 from $100 but maintained an ‘Overweight’ rating, according to The Fly.
• Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $122 from $96, saying Rocket Lab’s record revenue, Iridium acquisition and Neutron rocket’s targeted Q4 launch strengthened its long-term growth outlook.

Space firms Rocket Lab (RKLB) and AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) were in the limelight on Tuesday after the companies found Wall Street’s backing despite a mixed second-quarter print.

At the time of writing, ASTS stock climbed 2.3% higher while RKLB shares were down 4.1% in pre-market trading.

ASTS Reiterates FY2026 Outlook Despite Weak Q2

AST SpaceMobile reported second-quarter revenue of $31.5 million, below Wall Street estimates of $33.9 million, according to Fiscal.ai. Its loss of $0.77 per share was also significantly wider than analysts’ expectation of a $0.35 per share loss.

Still, the company maintained its full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $150 million to $200 million, supported by U.S. government contract awards. Its revenue backlog climbed to roughly $1.3 billion.

ASTS Remains Piper Sandler’s Favorite Space Stock

Piper Sandler trimmed its price target on ASTS to $98 from $100 but maintained an ‘Overweight’ rating, according to The Fly. It still represents a 38% upside potential from current levels.

The firm said the stock’s after-hours decline reflected the “plain vanilla” nature of the results rather than any change to its long-term thesis. Piper added that AST SpaceMobile remains its favorite stock in the space sector. The stock had closed over 4% lower on Monday.

Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $90 from $80 and kept an ‘Overweight’ rating. The brokerage said AST’s strategy of serving both commercial and government customers could help it expand across more than 20 countries while improving the economics of its consumer and business offerings.

Rocket Lab Posts Record Revenue

Rocket Lab delivered record second-quarter revenue of $234 million, up 62% year over year and ahead of Wall Street estimates of $230.9 million. Its loss of $0.08 per share, however, was wider than the $0.05 loss analysts expected.

For the third quarter, Rocket Lab expects revenue of $250 million to $265 million, compared with $155.1 million a year earlier. It projected adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) loss of $17 million to $23 million.

Wall Street Highlights Record RKLB Backlog

Roth Capital lowered its price target to $110 from $130 due to market valuations but maintained a ‘Buy’ rating, citing rising space-systems revenue and a multi-billion-dollar backlog. The firm reported a record backlog of $2.36 billion, a 137% increase from the previous year.

Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $122 from $96, saying Rocket Lab’s record revenue, planned Iridium acquisition and Neutron rocket’s targeted fourth-quarter launch strengthened its long-term growth outlook.

Retail's Take On ASTS, RKLB Growth Outlook

Retail sentiment surrounding ASTS on Stocktwits changed to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ over the past 24 hours, amid a 536% change in message volumes. Sentiment surrounding RKLB on Stocktwits also shifted to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ over the past 24 hours, while message volumes soared 680%.

One user expects ASTS to climb to $200 this year.

One RKLB bull said “story is still being written,” highlighting the record revenue and backlog.

ASTS shares have shed more than 17% so far this year while RKLB stock has climbed nearly 6% over the same period.

Also read: SpaceX’s $60B Cursor Bet Opens Door To $600 Bull Case, Says Morgan Stanley

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