Rocket Lab raises $1.94B equity, retires $3.6B loan to fund Iridium deal and expand components

SentiSense · Published Sep 16, 2026, 10:16 AM ET · Updated Sep 28, 2026, 2:45 AM ET

Rocket Lab raised $1.944 billion in gross proceeds from 29.3 million shares, and the $3.6 billion bridge commitment backstopping its pending Iridium acquisition has been terminated in full. The raise did not cover the bridge alone: it was obviated together with Iridium's separately amended $1.775 billion credit facility. The underlying deal values Iridium at about $8.0 billion of enterprise value at $54 per share, with a mid-2027 expected close. RKLB trades at a forward price-to-sales multiple of 31.43 against an industry average of 7.25.

Rocket Lab has cleared the financing for its pending Iridium acquisition. The company raised $1.944 billion in gross proceeds by selling 29.3 million shares, and the $3.6 billion bridge commitment that had backstopped the deal has been terminated in full.

The equity raise did not retire the bridge on its own, and the distinction matters for how much dilution the deal actually cost. The bridge was obviated by the raise together with Iridium's own separately amended $1.775 billion credit facility, roughly $3.72 billion of committed capital between them. Reading the $1.944 billion as covering $3.6 billion would understate how much of the purchase is being carried by debt at the target.

The underlying transaction is a $54-per-share cash-and-stock offer for Iridium, $27 of it in cash with the balance in stock under a collar, valuing the target at about $8.0 billion of enterprise value. It was announced on June 29, 2026 and is expected to close in mid-2027.

Alongside the deal, Rocket Lab is pushing its components business, selling avionics, radios, batteries and related hardware that it developed for its own launch and satellite programs. Zacks notes that hardware has now flown on more than 1,800 missions, which is the credential the company leads with when selling into other operators' constellations.

Valuation is where the optimism is visible. Zacks puts RKLB at a forward price-to-sales multiple of 31.43 against an industry average of 7.25, and its full-year consensus revenue near $945 million after a record quarterly figure of $234 million. A multiple at that premium prices in the Iridium contribution before the deal has closed, which makes the mid-2027 close date and the integration that follows the things that have to go right.