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Rigetti Shares Fall After Retail-Fueled Surge as Holiday Volatility Returns

Retail enthusiasm cooled in light holiday volumes, underscoring speculative trading detached from near-term fundamentals.

Overview

  • Rigetti stock fell 6.61% to $72.10 on Friday, reversing part of a midweek jump driven by retail momentum, according to Benzinga Pro.
  • Traders cited social media excitement around Rigetti’s 2026 roadmap, thin holiday liquidity, and a sector halo from peers as drivers of the week’s sharp swings.
  • Wedbush initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $35 target, highlighting chiplet advances and vertical integration, while Benchmark praised the modular design.
  • The company reports 2025 technical progress, including the largest multichip system and a 100+‑qubit chiplet at about 99.5% fidelity, with targets of 150+ qubits in 2026 and 1,000+ in 2027.
  • Commercial signals include two Novera system orders totaling $5.7 million for H1 2026 delivery, a three‑year $5.8 million AFRL contract with QphoX, NVQLink participation, and a setback from not advancing to DARPA Phase 2.