Sometimes a rocket launch goes exactly as planned. Shares of Rocket Companies, Inc. (RKT) blasted higher in extended trading Thursday after the mortgage and fintech giant reported fourth-quarter earnings that cleared the bar on both profit and sales, then pointed to an even stronger trajectory ahead.

Here’s what lit the fuse. Rocket said it earned 11 cents per share for the quarter, edging out the analyst consensus estimate of nine cents. Revenue came in at $2.44 billion, which wasn't just above the Street's forecast of $2.26 billion—it more than doubled the $1.19 billion it reported in the same quarter a year ago.

But the real story for a mortgage company isn't just the top and bottom lines; it's the volume flowing through its pipes. Rocket reported it generated $41.6 billion in total net rate lock volume and closed $47.3 billion in mortgage loan originations for the quarter. The total gain on sale margin was 2.82%.

Digging into the core business, which excludes its correspondent lending segment, the numbers looked even healthier. That segment saw $35.6 billion in net rate lock volume and $41 billion in closed loan volume, with a gain on sale margin of 3.2%. The company noted these three metrics marked its best fourth-quarter performance in four years.

CEO Varun Krishna framed the results as validation of the company's broader strategy. "Rocket proved itself this quarter as a category of one," Krishna said. "This is the power of an integrated homeownership ecosystem — massive top of funnel, scaled origination-servicing recapture, expansive distribution for industry professionals and a technologically advanced foundation for infinite capacity — built for the AI era."

Perhaps most encouraging for investors was the look ahead. Rocket isn't expecting a slowdown. The company guided for first-quarter revenue between $2.6 billion and $2.8 billion. That's a confident step above the $2.37 billion analysts were modeling.

The market's reaction was swift and positive. According to market data, Rocket stock climbed 7.60% to $19.11 in after-hours trading following the report.