By Akash Sriram and Joey Roulette
Aug 10 (Reuters) - Rocket Lab appeared to push back the timeline for the first flight of its Neutron rocket on Monday, as it now aims to get the vehicle to the launch pad in the fourth quarter rather than launching it then, sending its shares down 7% in extended trading.
The change could mark another delay for Neutron, a reusable medium-lift rocket central to Rocket Lab's effort to compete for larger commercial satellite, civil-space and U.S. national-security missions.
The rocket is also key to the company's own satellite plans.
Rocket Lab had previously targeted Neutron's inaugural flight for the fourth quarter of 2026. But the company said production of the rocket's first-stage tank was aligned with delivering Neutron to the launch pad during the quarter, without giving a new date for the first flight.
Chief Financial Officer Adam Spice said the company "hopefully" would launch Neutron within the same timeframe.
Rocket Lab has continued spending heavily to develop Neutron, build launch infrastructure and prepare for production. It has also begun signing customers for the rocket, including a contract with Kepler Communications to launch several communications and in-orbit computing satellites in 2028.
CEO Peter Beck said Neutron would reach the launch pad by year-end, calling the first test of a fully fueled rocket on the pad the stage that "always gets your adrenaline running" because of the risk of an accident.
"The window for an end-of-year launch is narrowing" and the company is now more focused on ensuring the rocket can hit the ground running with a quick cadence of missions after its debut, he said.
Rocket Lab also forecast third-quarter gross margins below Wall Street expectations as lower-margin satellite platforms account for a larger share of its growing business.
The company expects third-quarter gross margin of 29% to 31%, below the estimate of 37.6%, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Fewer sales of more established products weighed on second-quarter margins and would contribute to weaker margins in the third, Spice said.
Rocket Lab's space-systems division, accounting for 81% of its revenue, drove a 62% jump in second-quarter sales to a record $234 million, beating estimates.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Joey Roulette in Washington; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
