Sectors & Industries IndustrialsAerospace & Defense
Best Defense Stocks to Buy Now (2024)
Top defense stocks in 2024 ranked by overall Zen Score. See the best defense stocks to buy now, according to analyst forecasts for the aerospace & defense industry.

Industry: Aerospace & Defense

Overview Zen Score Price Valuation Financials Forecast Earnings & Revenue Dividends Ownership

Ticker	Company	Country	Market Cap	Shares	Institutional %	Insider %	Net Insider (L12M)	Net Insider (L3M)
VTSI	VIRTRA INC	United States	$183.53M	11,109,730	12.59%	87.41%	Net Selling	Net Buying
LMT	LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP	United States	$110.83B	239,938,144	74.35%	0.39%	Net Selling	Net Selling
GD	GENERAL DYNAMICS CORP	United States	$79.06B	274,364,084	86.09%	5.21%	Net Selling	Net Selling
NOC	NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP	United States	$69.42B	147,989,969	84.57%	4.34%	Net Selling	Net Selling
HII	HUNTINGTON INGALLS INDUSTRIES INC	United States	$9.71B	39,433,340	90.69%	4.03%	Net Buying	Net Buying
LHX	L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES INC	United States	$40.26B	189,680,354	84.90%	1.28%	Net Selling	Net Selling
ISSC	INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS & SUPPORT INC	United States	$109.12M	17,459,983	22.44%	59.66%	Net Selling
CVU	CPI AEROSTRUCTURES INC	United States	$32.52M	12,854,428	5.58%	94.42%	Net Buying
CW	CURTISS WRIGHT CORP	United States	$10.27B	38,298,789	82.19%	2.07%	Net Buying	Net Buying
OPXS	OPTEX SYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC	United States	$49.34M	6,823,693	7.25%	50.55%	Net Selling	Net Selling
NPK	NATIONAL PRESTO INDUSTRIES INC	United States	$598.44M	7,117,465	58.11%	24.88%	Net Selling	Net Selling
AXON	AXON ENTERPRISE INC	United States	$23.99B	75,302,832	78.53%	9.30%	Net Selling	Net Selling
WWD	WOODWARD INC	United States	$10.29B	60,919,845	80.21%	6.87%	Net Buying	Net Buying
MOG.A	MOOG INC	United States	$5.22B	31,969,066	88.40%	3.80%	Net Selling	Net Buying
PKE	PARK AEROSPACE CORP	United States	$292.86M	20,253,361	77.63%	10.70%
HXL	HEXCEL CORP	United States	$5.67B	83,114,360	74.70%	25.30%	Net Selling	Net Buying
DRS	LEONARDO DRS INC	United States	$5.58B	263,142,102	15.16%	84.84%	Net Selling	Net Selling
TXT	TEXTRON INC	United States	$16.32B	190,698,993	86.64%	1.50%	Net Selling	Net Selling
ESLT	ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD	Israel	$8.99B	44,453,850	17.78%	0.00%
PL	PLANET LABS PBC	United States	$526.02M	290,620,185	41.26%	15.06%	Net Selling	Net Selling
ERJ	EMBRAER SA	Brazil	$4.95B	734,632,806	9.12%	0.00%
BYRN	BYRNA TECHNOLOGIES INC	United States	$311.04M	22,736,497	25.00%	37.94%	Net Buying	Net Selling
EH	EHANG HOLDINGS LTD	China	$1.10B	127,011,481	8.58%	0.00%
RGR	STURM RUGER & CO INC	United States	$828.80M	17,664,200	63.83%	28.70%	Net Selling	Net Selling
SPCE	VIRGIN GALACTIC HOLDINGS INC	United States	$379.24M	400,040,013	38.81%	32.72%	Net Selling	Net Selling
BWXT	BWX TECHNOLOGIES INC	United States	$8.89B	91,309,389	87.40%	12.60%	Net Selling	Net Selling
VSEC	VSE CORP	United States	$1.31B	15,769,077	79.23%	20.77%	Net Selling	Net Selling
ASTC	ASTROTECH CORP	United States	$15.43M	1,701,729	1.26%	98.74%	Net Buying	Net Buying
SWBI	SMITH & WESSON BRANDS INC	United States	$782.43M	45,516,776	59.98%	40.02%	Net Selling	Net Selling
TATT	TAT TECHNOLOGIES LTD	Israel	$120.42M	10,102,612	8.15%	0.00%
RTX	RTX CORP	United States	$134.81B	1,329,506,013	86.42%	0.42%	Net Buying	Net Buying
RKLB	ROCKET LAB USA INC	United States	$1.96B	489,140,411	55.56%	32.27%	Net Selling	Net Selling
KTOS	KRATOS DEFENSE & SECURITY SOLUTIONS INC	United States	$2.41B	129,997,441	71.20%	28.80%	Net Selling	Net Selling
CAE	CAE INC	Canada	$6.52B	318,302,308	67.15%	0.00%
CODA	CODA OCTOPUS GROUP INC	United States	$74.86M	11,172,683	3.47%	96.53%	Net Selling
RDW	REDWIRE CORP	United States	$274.77M	65,578,724	5.69%	94.31%	Net Selling
CDRE	CADRE HOLDINGS INC	United States	$1.29B	37,587,436	25.47%	74.53%	Net Selling	Net Selling
HEI	HEICO CORP	United States	$29.24B	138,364,365	79.09%	4.45%	Net Buying	Net Buying
AIR	AAR CORP	United States	$2.48B	35,427,056	89.90%	10.10%	Net Buying	Net Selling
POWW	AMMO INC	United States	$301.40M	118,660,984	26.37%	31.25%	Net Selling	Net Selling
TDG	TRANSDIGM GROUP INC	United States	$71.94B	55,606,261	17.90%	82.10%	Net Selling	Net Selling
AVAV	AEROVIRONMENT INC	United States	$4.75B	28,135,734	68.21%	31.79%	Net Buying	Net Selling
LUNR	INTUITIVE MACHINES INC	United States	$679.48M	121,989,071	2.73%	17.95%	Net Selling	Net Selling
ATRO	ASTRONICS CORP	United States	$634.16M	34,521,519	56.68%	35.92%	Net Selling	Net Selling
HWM	HOWMET AEROSPACE INC	United States	$32.20B	408,183,459	83.64%	16.36%	Net Selling	Net Selling
KWE	KWESST MICRO SYSTEMS INC	Canada	$4.16M	5,616,782	19.19%	0.00%
MRCY	MERCURY SYSTEMS INC	United States	$1.72B	59,365,980	73.44%	26.56%	Net Buying	Net Buying
DPRO	DRAGANFLY INC	Canada	$9.85M	49,229,563	10.41%	0.00%
SPR	SPIRIT AEROSYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC	United States	$3.82B	116,053,453	92.89%	3.14%	Net Selling	Net Selling
BA	BOEING CO	United States	$110.37B	613,884,224	64.46%	1.33%	Net Selling	Net Selling
AULT	AULT ALLIANCE INC	United States	$10.01M	30,065,399	3.85%	64.46%	Net Buying
LLAP	TERRAN ORBITAL CORP	United States	$215.36M	201,270,799	35.76%	49.56%	Net Selling
DCO	DUCOMMUN INC	United States	$818.44M	14,641,154	86.85%	9.96%	Net Selling	Net Selling
SATL	SATELLOGIC INC	United States	$109.27M	90,303,985	21.04%	0.66%
SKYH	SKY HARBOUR GROUP CORP	United States	$688.13M	66,421,478	12.57%	87.43%
VVX	V2X INC	United States	$1.61B	31,325,760	43.96%	56.04%	Net Selling	Net Selling
MNTS	MOMENTUS INC	United States	$3.54M	6,562,221	4.59%	95.41%	Net Selling	Net Selling
SPPL	SIMPPLE LTD	Singapore	N/A	16,088,661	0.01%	0.00%
ACHR	ARCHER AVIATION INC	United States	$1.23B	310,574,786	39.64%	28.69%	Net Buying	Net Buying
TGI	TRIUMPH GROUP INC	United States	$1.06B	76,866,074	91.98%	8.02%	Net Selling	Net Selling
SIDU	SIDUS SPACE INC	United States	$13.05M	4,181,344	0.64%	99.36%	Net Buying
ZOOZ	ZOOZ POWER LTD	Israel	$19.21M	5,912,223	37.09%	56.92%
LOAR	LOAR HOLDINGS INC	United States	N/A	88,000,000	0.00%	100.00%	Net Buying	Net Buying
EVEX	EVE HOLDING INC	United States	$1.46B	269,365,708	1.46%	91.84%	Net Buying	Net Buying
AIRI	AIR INDUSTRIES GROUP	United States	$21.98M	3,315,368	2.01%	97.99%	Net Buying	Net Buying
SIF	SIFCO INDUSTRIES INC	United States	$19.28M	6,159,987	16.65%	55.39%
AZ	A2Z SMART TECHNOLOGIES CORP	Canada	$16.09M	38,399,440	4.48%	0.00%
ASTR	ASTRA SPACE INC	United States	$14.99M	22,711,034	3.16%	96.84%	Net Selling	Net Selling
KITT	NAUTICUS ROBOTICS INC	United States	$11.67M	62,089,911	2.53%	93.38%	Net Selling	Net Selling
LILM	LILIUM NV	Germany	$547.64M	526,579,207	3.73%	0.00%
HOVR	NEW HORIZON AIRCRAFT LTD	Canada	$36.44M	18,220,436	31.17%	57.68%
EVTL	VERTICAL AEROSPACE LTD	United Kingdom	$171.69M	221,249,244	1.02%	1.86%

Defense Stocks FAQ

What are the best defense stocks to buy right now in May 2024?

According to Zen Score, the 3 best defense stocks to buy right now are:

1. Virtra (NASDAQ:VTSI)

Virtra (NASDAQ:VTSI) is the top defense stock with a Zen Score of 55, which is 26 points higher than the defense industry average of 29. It passed 18 out of 33 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Virtra has seen its stock return 199.82% over the past year, overperforming other defense stocks by 188 percentage points.

Virtra has an average 1 year price target of $16.00, a downside of -3.15% from Virtra's current stock price of $16.52.

Virtra stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 2 analysts covering Virtra, 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.

2. Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT)

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) is the second best defense stock with a Zen Score of 52, which is 23 points higher than the defense industry average of 29. It passed 19 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Lockheed Martin has seen its stock return 1.95% over the past year, underperforming other defense stocks by -10 percentage points.

Lockheed Martin has an average 1 year price target of $502.75, an upside of 8.84% from Lockheed Martin's current stock price of $461.91.

Lockheed Martin stock has a consensus Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 8 analysts covering Lockheed Martin, 37.5% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 62.5% have issued a hold, while 0% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

3. Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC)

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) is the third best defense stock with a Zen Score of 49, which is 20 points higher than the defense industry average of 29. It passed 17 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Northrop Grumman has seen its stock return 5.72% over the past year, underperforming other defense stocks by -6 percentage points.

Northrop Grumman has an average 1 year price target of $496.83, an upside of 5.91% from Northrop Grumman's current stock price of $469.09.

Northrop Grumman stock has a consensus Hold recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 6 analysts covering Northrop Grumman, 16.67% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 0% have issued a Buy, 66.67% have issued a hold, while 16.67% have issued a Sell rating, and 0% have issued a Strong Sell.

What are the defense stocks with highest dividends?

Out of 20 defense stocks that have issued dividends in the past year, the 3 defense stocks with the highest dividend yields are:

1. National Presto Industries (NYSE:NPK)

National Presto Industries (NYSE:NPK) has an annual dividend yield of 5.35%, which is 4 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.55%. National Presto Industries's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% two times in the last 10 years. National Presto Industries's dividend has shown consistent growth over the last 10 years.

National Presto Industries's dividend payout ratio of 92.6% indicates that its high dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

2. Park Aerospace (NYSE:PKE)

Park Aerospace (NYSE:PKE) has an annual dividend yield of 3.46%, which is 2 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.55%. Park Aerospace's dividend payout is not stable, having dropped more than 10% three 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 319.1% indicates that its dividend yield might not be sustainable for the long-term.

3. Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI)

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) has an annual dividend yield of 2.79%, which is 1 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.55%.

Smith & Wesson Brands's dividend payout ratio of 80.7% indicates that its dividend yield is sustainable for the long-term.

Why are defense stocks up?

Defense stocks were up 0.77% in the last day, and up 1.71% over the last week.

We couldn't find a catalyst for why defense stocks are up.

What are the most undervalued defense stocks?

Based on WallStreetZen's Valuation Score, the 3 most undervalued defense stocks right now are:

1. Cpi Aerostructures (NYSEMKT:CVU)

Cpi Aerostructures (NYSEMKT:CVU) is the most undervalued defense stock based on WallStreetZen's Valuation Score. Cpi Aerostructures has a valuation score of 71, which is 52 points higher than the defense industry average of 19. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Cpi Aerostructures's stock has dropped -23.56% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -35 percentage points.

2. Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC)

Innovative Solutions & Support (NASDAQ:ISSC) is the second most undervalued defense stock based on WallStreetZen's Valuation Score. Innovative Solutions & Support has a valuation score of 71, which is 52 points higher than the defense industry average of 19. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Innovative Solutions & Support's stock has dropped -5.87% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -17 percentage points.

3. Virtra (NASDAQ:VTSI)

Virtra (NASDAQ:VTSI) is the third most undervalued defense stock based on WallStreetZen's Valuation Score. Virtra has a valuation score of 57, which is 38 points higher than the defense industry average of 19. It passed 4 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Virtra's stock has gained 199.82% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the defense industry by 188 percentage points.

Are defense stocks a good buy now?

54.35% of defense stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect defense stocks to rise by 6.14% over the next year.

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

The average P/E ratio of the aerospace & defense industry is 23.4x.

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.