$Rocket Lab(RKLB.US)has dropped roughly 55% from its late-May 2026 peak. The decline is largely a high-beta unwind rather than a company-specific operational collapse.

The main catalyst was the post-SpaceX IPO reset. Space stocks had rallied hard on expectations that the listing would lift the entire sector through hype and potential passive inflows. Once SpaceX listed, investors took profits, rotated capital into the newly public giant, and reassessed valuations across the group. The absence of a quick S&P 500 inclusion for SpaceX removed another hoped-for tailwind, accelerating the sector-wide selloff.

Broader market dynamics amplified the move. The stock had risen hundreds of percent over the prior year. High-beta growth names faced profit-taking amid valuation concerns (including AI-related), occasional rate and risk-off pressure, and secondary events such as a Blue Origin test incident that triggered sympathy selling across launch stocks.

@Captain's Treasure