What's happening
- Rocket Lab announced an $8B acquisition of Iridium on June 29, vertically integrating a working satellite constellation with its launch and manufacturing stack.
- Shares are down 31.7% over the past month despite today's +3.7% pop, reflecting deal dilution fears against a 177% one-year gain.
- Four Form 4 filings in 30 days show net buying of 200,127 shares including director Slusky, an unusual signal into a large acquisition.
- Coverage this week highlighted RKLB's inclusion on a Pentagon launch on-ramp, adding defense revenue visibility alongside the Iridium news.
- Planet Labs +8%, SpaceX secondaries +4%, and the FAA barring employee SpaceX purchases underscore a broad space-equity rerating benefiting RKLB.