Rigetti drops on Q3 miss, soft 2026 outlook

Rigetti Computing’s shares fell in extended trading after the company reported third-quarter 2026 results that missed analyst expectations and issued weaker full-year guidance. The stock declined about 7.2% in Tuesday’s after-hours session to $11.30 following the announcement. The market response reflected disappointment with both the revenue shortfall and the updated outlook for 2026.

Quarterly revenue was $1.41 million, below analyst estimates that were above $3.5 million and down from $1.95 million in the same period a year earlier. The miss came as the company recorded no hardware sales in the quarter, with revenue instead coming from research contracts and access to its quantum computing systems.

For the three months ended September 30, 2026, Rigetti generated total revenue of $1.41 million. Revenue declined 27.5% year over year, reflecting the absence of quantum computer and component sales during the period. Research and professional services contributed $1.27 million, and access to quantum computing systems contributed $0.15 million.

Cost of revenue was $0.55 million, resulting in a GAAP gross margin of 60.7%. Despite the strong gross margin, elevated operating expenses weighed on profitability.

Operating expenses totaled $34.0 million, including $25.5 million of research and development spending, which was up 69.7% from a year earlier. The company reported an operating loss of $33.2 million for the quarter.

GAAP net loss for the quarter was $3.1 million, while non-GAAP net loss was $20.5 million. On a per-share basis, Rigetti reported a loss of six cents, missing the consensus estimate for a five-cent loss.

Rigetti ended the third quarter of 2026 with $497.1 million in cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments. The company reported that it had no debt at quarter end. Management highlighted that this cash position provides flexibility to continue investing in its technology roadmap and customer opportunities.

The company also emphasized progress on its quantum hardware, noting a 108-qubit system that achieved 99.5% median two-qubit fidelity, and referenced deployment of large multi-chip quantum processors during 2026. These technology developments sit alongside the company’s ongoing commercial efforts.

Looking ahead, Rigetti now expects full-year 2026 revenue of approximately $20 million. This outlook assumes customer acceptance and associated revenue recognition for its 108-qubit quantum computing system being delivered to India’s C-DAC in the fourth quarter. With $10.9 million of revenue recorded in the first nine months of 2026, the target implies a substantial contribution from this contract in the final quarter.

The company’s 2026 revenue outlook is therefore heavily dependent on successful and timely acceptance of the C-DAC system. If achieved, the guidance would represent significant growth from 2025, while underscoring the importance of large individual system deals in Rigetti’s current revenue mix.