Shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals RCKT were down on Friday after the company announced weaker-than-expected first-quarter 2026 earnings.
RCKT incurred a loss of 42 cents per share in the first quarter of 2026, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 41 cents. In the year-ago quarter, the company had reported a loss of 56 cents per share.
Rocket Pharmaceuticals did not record any revenues in the first quarter.
Year to date, shares of Rocket Pharmaceuticals have risen 3.4% against the industry’s decline of 1.7%.
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RCKT’s Q1 Results in Detail
In the reported quarter, general and administrative expenses declined by around 39.8% year over year to $17.1 million, owing to lower legal expenses and other expenses.
Research and development expenses were $31.5 million, down 12.2% from the year-ago quarter’s figure. The decrease reflects more disciplined spending and resource management after the company’s recent organizational restructuring.
As of March 31, 2026, Rocket Pharmaceuticals had cash, cash equivalents and investments of $144.4 million compared with $188.9 million as of Dec. 31, 2025. Management expects this cash balance, along with proceeds from the sale of the Priority Review Voucher (PRV) announced last month, to fund operations into the second quarter of 2028.
RCKT’s Recent Key Updates
In March 2026, the FDA granted accelerated approval to RCKT’s gene therapy Kresladi (marnetegragene autotemcel) to treat patients with severe leukocyte adhesion deficiency-I (LAD-I), an ultra-rare genetic disorder.
Following the nod, Kresladi became the first gene therapy to be approved by the FDA for treating children with severe LAD-I due to biallelic variants in ITGB2 without an available human leukocyte antigen-matched sibling donor for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant.
With the FDA approval for Kresladi, the company received a Rare Pediatric Disease PRV, which is an incentive given by the FDA to encourage the development of drugs and biologics for rare and serious diseases.
Last month, RCKT entered into a definitive agreement to sell its PRV for $180 million. The PRV monetization provides non-dilutive capital to support the company’s cardiovascular pipeline.
Last August, the FDA lifted the clinical hold on the pivotal phase II study evaluating RCKT’s investigational gene therapy candidate, RP-A501, for treating patients with Danon disease. RP-A501 is the most advanced AAV-based candidate in the company’s pipeline.
Per an agreement with the FDA, three more patients are being treated with a lower, recalibrated dose of RP-A501 (3.8 x 10¹³ GC/kg), with a minimum four-week interval between doses and an updated immune-modulating regimen. After these patients are treated, RCKT will discuss completion of the pivotal phase II study with the FDA. The company expects to provide an update in the second half of 2026 following these discussions.
Rocket Pharmaceuticals is also developing RP-A601 in an early-stage study for treating arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. The company also plans to start clinical studies on a new gene therapy candidate, RP-A701, for the treatment of dilated cardiomyopathy by mid-2026.
Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Quote
RCKT's Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Rocket Pharmaceuticals currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks in the biotech sector are Agenus AGEN, Amarin AMRN and AnaptysBio ANAB, each currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Over the past 60 days, estimates for Agenus’ 2026 earnings per share have risen from 58 cents to $2.10, while loss per share estimates for 2027 have narrowed from $1.51 to 73 cents during the same time. AGEN shares have surged 21.6% year to date.
Agenus’ earnings beat estimates in two of the trailing four quarters, while missing the same on the remaining two occasions, with the average surprise being 31.42%.
Over the past 60 days, 2026 loss per share estimates for Amarin have narrowed from $7.01 to $6.36, while the same for 2027 have narrowed from $5.50 to $4.64 during the same time. AMRN stock has risen 7.8% year to date.
Amarin's earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters, while missing the same on the remaining occasion, with the average surprise being 50.02%.
Over the past 60 days, 2026 loss per share estimates for AnaptysBio have narrowed from $3.61 to $1.30, while estimates for 2027 have moved from a loss of $4.59 per share to earnings of $3.01 during the same time. ANAB stock has surged 43% year to date.
AnaptysBio’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 59.70%.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).