Sectors & IndustriesIndustrialsAerospace & Defense
Best Defense Stocks to Buy Now (2025)
Top defense stocks in 2025 ranked by overall Zen Rating. "A" Rated stocks have returned an average of +32.52% per year, and are the best defense stocks to buy now. Learn More.

Industry: Aerospace & Defense
B
Defense is Zen Rated B and is the 51st ranked industry out of 145 stock market industries
Learn how the Zen Ratings work
Ticker
Company
Exchange
Industry
Zen Rating
Market Cap
Price
1d %
EBITDA
P/E
D/E
Country
DD Score
ATRO
ASTRONICS CORP
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$1.07B$30.17-0.10%$55.40M-274.27x1.48
United States
ISSC
INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS & SUPPORT INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$168.61M$9.61-1.84%$12.48M25.29x0.70
United States
DCO
DUCOMMUN INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.01B$67.970.28%$98.47M28.68x0.63
United States
TATT
TAT TECHNOLOGIES LTD
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$378.97M$34.64-1.62%$18.29M32.07x0.46
Israel
ESLT
ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$17.60B$395.151.35%$669.71M54.73x2.35
Israel
TXT
TEXTRON INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$13.84B$76.680.89%$1.44B17.12x1.33
United States
CW
CURTISS WRIGHT CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$15.46B$410.110.74%$704.10M36.29x0.94
United States
AOUT
AMERICAN OUTDOOR BRANDS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$161.22M$12.66-0.39%$9.47M-37.24x0.38
United States
ERJ
EMBRAER SA
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$8.96B$48.81-1.17%$1.21B25.42x2.76
Brazil
DRS
LEONARDO DRS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$11.09B$41.671.71%$394.00M46.82x0.59
United States
HWM
HOWMET AEROSPACE INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$65.72B$162.800.94%$1.98B52.86x1.25
United States
VVX
V2X INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.52B$48.02-8.20%$261.97M36.38x2.00
United States
BWXT
BWX TECHNOLOGIES INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$10.02B$109.690.79%$478.90M34.71x1.78
United States
GD
GENERAL DYNAMICS CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$75.34B$280.710.79%$5.76B19.25x1.55
United States
LOAR
LOAR HOLDINGS INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$8.01B$85.592.29%$132.12M219.46x0.34
United States
WWD
WOODWARD INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$12.48B$209.790.70%$621.23M32.78x0.92
United States
LMT
LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$109.73B$468.320.68%$9.08B20.13x7.48
United States
RTX
RTX CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$181.00B$135.48-0.03%$12.26B39.38x1.65
United States
SARO
STANDARDAERO INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$10.02B$29.95-0.86%N/AN/A1.67
United States
CAE
CAE INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$8.13B$25.38-1.05%$810.14M27.98x1.28
Canada
CDRE
CADRE HOLDINGS INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.43B$35.290.20%$82.68M37.15x1.07
United States
MOG.A
MOOG INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$5.81B$184.140.08%$428.56M28.20x1.35
United States
VTSI
VIRTRA INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$66.78M$5.93-0.84%$3.30M49.42x0.42
United States
RGR
STURM RUGER & CO INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$611.04M$36.91-0.75%$60.38M19.95x0.18
United States
KTOS
KRATOS DEFENSE & SECURITY SOLUTIONS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$5.40B$35.212.38%$82.00M270.85x0.45
United States
HEI
HEICO CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$38.73B$278.751.22%$1.00B68.15x0.98
United States
LHX
L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$43.03B$230.201.47%$3.68B27.18x1.16
United States
NPK
NATIONAL PRESTO INDUSTRIES INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$623.03M$87.170.13%$56.92M14.63x0.24
United States
KRMN
KARMAN HOLDINGS INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$5.86B$44.32-0.54%N/AN/A1.51
United States
EH
EHANG HOLDINGS LTD
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$1.37B$19.02-0.37%-$28.21M-40.64x0.66
China
AIR
AAR CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$2.26B$62.680.84%$137.60M-169.41x1.42
United States
TDG
TRANSDIGM GROUP INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$79.94B$1,423.171.25%$4.21B48.03x-4.86
United States
MRCY
MERCURY SYSTEMS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$2.76B$46.140.59%$30.17M-41.57x0.66
United States
EVTL
VERTICAL AEROSPACE LTD
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$488.16M$5.771.41%N/AN/A-3.68
United Kingdom
POWW
AMMO INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$228.01M$1.92-4.95%-$7.93M-9.14x0.16
United States
PKE
PARK AEROSPACE CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$279.15M$14.011.23%$11.03M38.92x0.16
United States
AXON
AXON ENTERPRISE INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$57.08B$733.180.66%$385.46M168.55x1.38
United States
BYRN
BYRNA TECHNOLOGIES INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$575.07M$25.37-0.63%$11.34M39.64x0.25
United States
CVU
CPI AEROSTRUCTURES INC
NYSEMKT
Aerospace & Defense
$42.25M$3.25-6.07%$5.62M23.21x1.62
United States
HII
HUNTINGTON INGALLS INDUSTRIES INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$9.03B$230.050.83%$1.07B16.57x1.54
United States
SATL
SATELLOGIC INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$431.01M$4.14-11.16%N/AN/A-1.74
United States
BA
BOEING CO
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$155.19B$205.82-0.20%-$7.04B-11.49x-48.07
United States
AZ
A2Z CUST2MATE SOLUTIONS CORP
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$276.08M$9.3310.68%-$10.93M-16.78x0.87
Canada
VSEC
VSE CORP
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$2.76B$133.441.70%$89.07M173.30x0.78
United States
NOC
NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$68.10B$473.170.88%$6.50B18.64x2.24
United States
HXL
HEXCEL CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$4.40B$54.661.13%$299.80M35.49x0.81
United States
MNTS
MOMENTUS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$10.91M$1.972.07%-$30.42M-0.12x-2.96
United States
RDW
REDWIRE CORP
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$942.73M$12.23-5.41%-$85.05M-5.39x-3.64
United States
SKYH
SKY HARBOUR GROUP CORP
NYSEMKT
Aerospace & Defense
$917.41M$12.09-1.95%-$23.50M-10.33x4.10
United States
SPAI
SAFE PRO GROUP INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$44.76M$2.951.03%-$6.78M-4.21x0.28
United States
KWE
KWESST MICRO SYSTEMS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$1.92M$5.122.40%-$6.24M-0.04x0.61
Canada
AVAV
AEROVIRONMENT INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$4.63B$164.09-0.85%$81.95M140.25x0.22
United States
SPCE
VIRGIN GALACTIC HOLDINGS INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$170.54M$4.8043.28%-$318.27M-0.35x1.98
United States
ACHR
ARCHER AVIATION INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$7.30B$13.309.11%-$497.00M-10.81x0.20
United States
DPRO
DRAGANFLY INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$10.15M$1.87-1.58%-$10.92M-0.60x3.69
Canada
PL
PLANET LABS PBC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.19B$3.931.03%-$75.10M-9.36x0.44
United States
LUNR
INTUITIVE MACHINES INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$2.21B$12.364.48%-$197.20M-4.59x-1.26
United States
SWBI
SMITH & WESSON BRANDS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$430.79M$9.790.51%$73.23M15.06x0.59
United States
PRZO
PARAZERO TECHNOLOGIES LTD
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$12.18M$0.957.22%-$11.03M-0.96x-19.41
Israel
SIDU
SIDUS SPACE INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$29.65M$1.62-10.50%-$14.05M-0.45x0.60
United States
SPR
SPIRIT AEROSYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$4.44B$37.820.99%-$1.47B-2.07x-3.02
United States
KITT
NAUTICUS ROBOTICS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$36.89M$0.99-2.08%-$62.61M-0.61x30.86
United States
RKLB
ROCKET LAB USA INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$11.80B$25.571.39%-$160.92M-63.93x1.91
United States
EVEX
EVE HOLDING INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.38B$4.652.65%-$155.93M-8.45x3.00
United States
OPXS
OPTEX SYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$58.28M$8.433.31%$6.60M11.71x0.27
United States
ASTC
ASTROTECH CORP
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$9.93M$5.86-0.68%-$12.79M-0.70x0.11
United States
GPUS
HYPERSCALE DATA INC
NYSEMKT
Aerospace & Defense
$8.03M$5.25-12.35%-$10.30M-0.08x25.32
United States
TGI
TRIUMPH GROUP INC
NYSE
Aerospace & Defense
$1.99B$25.670.00%$689.89M3.39x-19.37
United States
CODA
CODA OCTOPUS GROUP INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$77.38M$6.89-1.57%$5.68M19.69x0.07
United States
AIRI
AIR INDUSTRIES GROUP
NYSEMKT
Aerospace & Defense
$12.53M$3.333.10%$3.24M-7.09x2.17
United States
SHMD
SCHMID GROUP NV
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$123.34M$2.87-3.37%N/AN/A-3.06
Germany
SIF
SIFCO INDUSTRIES INC
NYSEMKT
Aerospace & Defense
$18.57M$3.00-3.23%$2.61M-4.41x1.44
United States
RAIN
RAIN ENHANCEMENT TECHNOLOGIES HOLDCO INC
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$51.82M$6.8314.35%-$6.08M0.07x-1.20
United States
HOVR
NEW HORIZON AIRCRAFT LTD
NASDAQ
Aerospace & Defense
$21.40M$0.6815.79%$7.08M1.77x0.48
Canada

Defense Stocks FAQ

What are the best defense stocks to buy right now in May 2025?

According to Zen Ratings, our proprietary rating system that evaluates 115 factors proven to drive growth in stocks and assigns each stock in our system an overall letter grade as well as 7 individual Component Grades for Value, Growth, Momentum, Sentiment, Safety, Financials, and proprietary AI algorithms, the 3 best defense stocks to buy right now are:

1. Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO)


Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) is the #1 top defense stock out of 74 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) is: Value: C, Growth: A, Momentum: B, Sentiment: C, Safety: C, Financials: B, and AI: B.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) has a Due Diligence Score of 26, which is -4 points lower than the defense industry average of 30. Although this number is below the industry average, our proven quant model rates ATRO as a "A".

ATRO passed 8 out of 33 due diligence checks and has average fundamentals. Astronics has seen its stock return 44.49% over the past year, overperforming other defense stocks by 24 percentage points.

Astronics has an average 1 year price target of $21.00, a downside of -30.39% from Astronics's current stock price of $30.17.

Astronics stock has a consensus Hold recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 1 analyst covering Astronics, 0% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 100% have issued a hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

2. Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC)


Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC) is the #2 top defense stock out of 74 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC) is: Value: B, Growth: B, Momentum: C, Sentiment: A, Safety: D, Financials: C, and AI: C.

Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC) has a Due Diligence Score of 33, which is 3 points higher than the defense industry average of 30.

ISSC passed 13 out of 38 due diligence checks and has average fundamentals. Innovative Solutions & Support has seen its stock return 77.63% over the past year, overperforming other defense stocks by 58 percentage points.

3. Ducommun (NYSE:DCO)


Ducommun (NYSE:DCO) is the #3 top defense stock out of 74 with a Zen Rating of A. Stocks with a rating of A have had an average return of +32.52% per year. Learn more.

The Component Grade breakdown for Ducommun (NYSE:DCO) is: Value: B, Growth: B, Momentum: C, Sentiment: B, Safety: B, Financials: C, and AI: B.

Ducommun (NYSE:DCO) has a Due Diligence Score of 43, which is 13 points higher than the defense industry average of 30.

DCO passed 14 out of 33 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Ducommun has seen its stock return 17.39% over the past year, underperforming other defense stocks by -3 percentage points.

Ducommun has an average 1 year price target of $70.00, an upside of 2.99% from Ducommun's current stock price of $67.97.

Ducommun stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 1 analyst covering Ducommun, 100% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 0% have issued a hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

What are the defense stocks with highest dividends?

Out of 22 defense stocks that have issued dividends in the past year, the 3 defense stocks with the highest dividend yields are:

1. Transdigm Group (NYSE:TDG)


Transdigm Group (NYSE:TDG) has an annual dividend yield of 5.27%, which is 4 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.31%.

Transdigm Group's dividend payout ratio of 253.1% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

2. Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI)


Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) has an annual dividend yield of 3.98%, which is 3 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.31%. Smith & Wesson Brands's dividend payout is stable, having never dropped by more than 10% in the last 10 years. Smith & Wesson Brands's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Smith & Wesson Brands's dividend payout ratio of 78.5% indicates that its high dividend yield is sustainable for the long-term.

3. Park Aerospace (NYSE:PKE)


Park Aerospace (NYSE:PKE) has an annual dividend yield of 2.71%, which is 1 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.31%. Park Aerospace's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% two times in the last 10 years. Park Aerospace's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

Park Aerospace's dividend payout ratio of 138.9% indicates that its dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

Why are defense stocks up?

Defense stocks were up 0.75% in the last day, and up 2.95% over the last week. Virgin Galactic Holdings was the among the top gainers in the aerospace & defense industry, gaining 43.28% yesterday.

Virgin Galactic shares are trading higher following Q1 financial results

What are the most undervalued defense stocks?

Based on the Valuation rating, one of the 7 components of a stocks overall Zen Ratings grade, which evaluates factors including estimated earnings yield, earnings before interest and taxes/enterprise value, cash flow yield, free cash flow to price, and price-to-earnings growth (PEG ratio), the 3 most undervalued defense stocks right now are:

1. V2x (NYSE:VVX)


V2x (NYSE:VVX) is the most undervalued defense stock based on its Valuation Rating of A. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

V2x has a valuation score of 43, which is 25 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 3 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

V2x's stock has gained 3.65% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -16 percentage points.

2. Textron (NYSE:TXT)


Textron (NYSE:TXT) is the second most undervalued defense stock based on its Valuation Rating of A. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Textron has a valuation score of 57, which is 39 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 4 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Textron's stock has dropped -12.35% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -32 percentage points.

3. Sturm Ruger & Co (NYSE:RGR)


Sturm Ruger & Co (NYSE:RGR) is the third most undervalued defense stock based on its Valuation Rating of B. Valuation is one of 7 Component Grades used to calculate the overall Zen Rating.

Sturm Ruger & Co has a valuation score of 43, which is 25 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 3 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Sturm Ruger & Co's stock has dropped -14.34% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -34 percentage points.

Are defense stocks a good buy now?

47.06% of defense stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect defense stocks to rise by 5.97% over the next year.

10.94% of defense stocks have a Zen Rating of A (Strong Buy), 17.19% of defense stocks are rated B (Buy), 51.56% are rated C (Hold), 15.63% are rated D (Sell), and 4.69% are rated F (Strong Sell).

What is the average p/e ratio of the aerospace & defense industry?

The average P/E ratio of the aerospace & defense industry is 35.12x.
WallStreetZen does not provide financial advice and does not issue recommendations or offers to buy stock or sell any security.

Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes and is not advice. WallStreetZen does not bear any responsibility for any losses or damage that may occur as a result of reliance on this data.