Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) CFO Jeffrey Bertelsen Sells 3,860 Shares of Stock

Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI) CFO Jeffrey Bertelsen sold 3,860 shares of Rigetti Computing stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.89, for a total value of $65,195.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 168,067 shares in the company, valued at $2,838,651.63. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Rigetti Computing Price Performance

RGTI stock opened at $16.07 on Friday. Rigetti Computing, Inc. has a 1-year low of $12.53 and a 1-year high of $58.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.73. The company has a market capitalization of $5.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.86 and a beta of 1.99.

Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $5.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.09 million. Rigetti Computing had a negative net margin of 2,189.54% and a negative return on equity of 17.50%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Rigetti Computing, Inc. will post -0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rigetti Computing

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 11.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 19,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Rigetti Computing by 13.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 538,449 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,403,000 after acquiring an additional 63,658 shares during the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in Rigetti Computing in the 2nd quarter valued at $87,000. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rigetti Computing during the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Rigetti Computing by 21.0% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 122,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,367,000 after purchasing an additional 21,300 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RGTI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Rigetti Computing from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of Rigetti Computing in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Rigetti Computing in a report on Monday, July 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Rigetti Computing from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.67.

More Rigetti Computing News

Here are the key news stories impacting Rigetti Computing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rigetti reported strong second-quarter revenue growth to $5.14 million from $1.80 million a year earlier. The company also highlighted a U.S. Department of Commerce letter of intent for up to $100 million in quantum R&D support and commercial system deliveries involving partners including Nvidia and HPE. Did Quantum Revenue Surge And US$100 Million R&D Backing Just Shift Rigetti Computing’s Investment Narrative?
• Positive Sentiment: The company created a dedicated Systems Delivery organization to support growing demand for on-premises quantum systems. David Rivas became chief operating officer, while Andrew Bestwick was appointed chief technology officer to focus on chip development and hardware engineering. Rigetti said the structure should improve customer deployments and help advance its target of 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity for its Cepheus-1-108Q system. Rigetti Computing Establishes Dedicated Systems Delivery Organization
• Neutral Sentiment: Board member Dr. Ray Johnson announced an upcoming resignation, adding to investor focus on governance and management changes. The available report does not indicate that the resignation reflects a change in business strategy. Rigetti Computing Announces Upcoming Board Member Resignation
• Negative Sentiment: Rigetti shares declined along with other quantum-computing stocks, including IonQ and D-Wave, in a broad sector selloff. The report cited no specific company news driving the industry-wide move, suggesting risk reduction across a volatile category. Quantum Stock Selloff
• Negative Sentiment: The reorganization was interpreted by some investors as a leadership shake-up, particularly because it separates systems delivery from chip development. Although management described the changes as an effort to improve execution, investors may remain concerned about transition risk and the company’s ability to meet technology and deployment milestones. Rigetti Shares Plunge After Major Leadership Shake-Up
• Negative Sentiment: CTO Andrew Bestwick, COO David Rivas, and CFO Jeffrey Bertelsen sold shares to cover tax withholding obligations tied to vested equity awards. The transactions were relatively small portions of their remaining holdings, but the absence of reported insider purchases adds to a cautious sentiment around RGTI.

About Rigetti Computing

Rigetti Computing is a pioneering quantum computing company that designs and manufactures superconducting quantum processors alongside a complementary software stack. Founded in 2013 by CEO Chad Rigetti, the company has developed end-to-end quantum systems—from cryogenic hardware to control electronics—to advance the performance and scalability of quantum machines.

At the core of Rigetti’s offering is its Quantum Cloud Services (QCS) platform, which enables developers and enterprises to access quantum processing units (QPUs) and hybrid quantum-classical workflows via the cloud.