Shares of Rocket Lab (NASDAQ: RKLB) climbed 0.4% overnight Friday after the company revealed significant new progress on the Neutron rocket’s reusable “Hungry Hippo” fairing system.
The stock had fallen 1% on Thursday, extending its weekly decline to 3%, before recovering ground on the back of two separate pieces of positive news.
Rocket Lab announced on X that the Hungry Hippo fairing recently received its thermal protection, control surfaces, avionics, and fluid systems ahead of further preflight testing.
“Recently our Hungry Hippo reusable fairing received its thermal protection, control surfaces, and avionics and fluid systems,” Rocket Lab said. “Now it’s on an outside excursion ready to undergo further testing before flight one.”
Unlike conventional fairings that are discarded or recovered separately, Hungry Hippo’s two halves remain attached to Neutron’s first stage throughout the flight sequence.
The halves open to release the second stage and payload, then close again after just 1.5 seconds, allowing the entire rocket to return to Earth as a single reusable vehicle, a world-first for a commercial launch system.
CEO Peter Beck stated during a recent earnings call that once the current checks are completed, Hungry Hippo will be “essentially finished and ready for launch,” after which it will be mated with Neutron’s interstage.
Rocket Lab completed Hungry Hippo’s qualification and acceptance campaign in December 2025, with testing that included applying 275,000 pounds of force to simulate peak aerodynamic pressure and subjecting control-surface hubs to more than 125% of expected flight loads.
The company continues to target delivery of Neutron to the launch pad in the fourth quarter, though Beck acknowledged that “the window for an end-of-year launch is narrowing.”
Neutron is capable of carrying up to 13,000 kilograms to orbit, with its nine engines producing a combined 1.45 million pounds of thrust.
Rocket Lab has already secured dedicated Neutron missions from the U.S. Space Force and Kepler Communications, underlining growing institutional demand for the vehicle ahead of its debut flight.
On the government contracts front, the U.S. Space Force selected Rocket Lab alongside Amazon LEO for Government, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and York Space Systems to help develop a multi-vendor Space Data Network.
Each company in the selection received a complementary $12 million award set, comprising a $10 million contract to demonstrate data transport between different vendor systems and a $2 million agreement supporting Space Exchange Point satellites functioning as orbital routers connecting commercial and government networks.
Retail sentiment on Stocktwits for RKLB was tracked as “extremely bullish” amid “extremely high” message volume following the announcements.
One user commented, “$RKLB Successful Neutron launch is inevitable and with it a flood of new revenue. Don’t fight the strong current, it’s pointless. Exact timing is the only uncertainty.”
Another user added, “$RKLB this thing is looking promising and primed for a rip. Bears out in full force, can’t get any traction to move up or down.”
RKLB stock has gained 86% over the past year, reflecting sustained investor confidence in the company’s expanding launch and government services business.
