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

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

Ticker	Company	Exchange	Industry	Market Cap	Price	1d %	EBITDA	P/E	D/E
VTSI	VIRTRA INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$185.64M	$16.71	-2.39%	$11.65M	21.70x	0.63
LMT	LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$112.50B	$468.88	0.10%	$10.36B	17.09x	7.27
GD	GENERAL DYNAMICS CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$81.33B	$296.44	0.16%	$5.02B	23.91x	1.58
HII	HUNTINGTON INGALLS INDUSTRIES INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$9.94B	$252.03	0.42%	$1.31B	14.21x	1.71
CVU	CPI AEROSTRUCTURES INC	NYSEMKT	Aerospace & Defense	$34.84M	$2.71	2.26%	$6.78M	1.94x	2.37
CW	CURTISS WRIGHT CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$10.62B	$277.33	0.09%	$651.88M	28.39x	0.94
ISSC	INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS & SUPPORT INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$109.12M	$6.25	-2.50%	$9.84M	16.89x	0.40
AXON	AXON ENTERPRISE INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$22.90B	$303.43	-1.83%	$323.60M	86.69x	0.99
NOC	NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$70.27B	$474.80	0.29%	$4.38B	33.00x	2.36
LHX	L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$41.65B	$219.60	0.05%	$3.02B	35.53x	1.24
OPXS	OPTEX SYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$53.09M	$7.78	-2.14%	$3.97M	18.09x	0.46
NPK	NATIONAL PRESTO INDUSTRIES INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$598.40M	$84.31	-1.79%	$45.28M	18.61x	0.26
MOG.A	MOOG INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$5.62B	$175.66	1.97%	$406.12M	29.52x	1.30
HXL	HEXCEL CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$5.99B	$72.03	-1.71%	$266.00M	60.53x	0.73
WWD	WOODWARD INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$10.80B	$177.26	-1.11%	$599.54M	30.04x	0.87
ESLT	ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$8.85B	$199.05	-0.41%	$540.67M	41.04x	2.30
TXT	TEXTRON INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$16.89B	$88.55	0.07%	$1.56B	18.72x	1.37
PL	PLANET LABS PBC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$563.80M	$1.94	-7.18%	-$92.06M	-3.88x	0.36
BYRN	BYRNA TECHNOLOGIES INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$304.90M	$13.41	-0.74%	-$3.77M	-49.67x	0.22
ERJ	EMBRAER SA	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$4.76B	$25.92	-1.82%	$684.00M	29.45x	2.78
PKE	PARK AEROSPACE CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$299.34M	$14.78	0.14%	$10.47M	31.45x	0.14
CDRE	CADRE HOLDINGS INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$1.27B	$31.31	1.23%	$71.82M	30.70x	1.21
DRS	LEONARDO DRS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$5.98B	$22.72	1.11%	$331.00M	32.00x	0.61
RGR	STURM RUGER & CO INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$758.34M	$43.58	1.21%	$71.26M	18.70x	0.16
RKLB	ROCKET LAB USA INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$2.03B	$4.11	-3.52%	-$136.31M	-11.11x	1.47
ASTC	ASTROTECH CORP	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$15.78M	$9.27	0.08%	-$9.59M	-1.47x	0.06
SPCE	VIRGIN GALACTIC HOLDINGS INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$391.62M	$0.95	-7.57%	-$417.85M	-0.78x	1.58
SWBI	SMITH & WESSON BRANDS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$744.20M	$16.35	-0.55%	$69.18M	28.68x	0.52
BWXT	BWX TECHNOLOGIES INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$8.22B	$89.90	1.08%	$455.38M	32.45x	1.95
RTX	RTX CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$141.35B	$106.32	0.55%	$9.50B	41.86x	1.62
TATT	TAT TECHNOLOGIES LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$126.67M	$12.54	-0.25%	$11.64M	24.11x	0.61
EH	EHANG HOLDINGS LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$1.10B	$17.36	-2.42%	-$38.34M	-25.31x	1.80
HEI	HEICO CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$29.81B	$215.44	1.22%	$783.98M	69.72x	1.12
HWM	HOWMET AEROSPACE INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$33.01B	$80.87	-1.41%	$1.54B	38.88x	1.55
AIR	AAR CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$2.56B	$72.18	0.12%	$137.60M	42.46x	0.73
POWW	AMMO INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$288.35M	$2.43	-1.22%	$3.57M	-16.20x	0.11
CAE	CAE INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$6.67B	$20.94	-0.76%	$662.00M	32.52x	1.24
VSEC	VSE CORP	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$1.28B	$79.78	-1.12%	$94.78M	48.65x	1.18
CODA	CODA OCTOPUS GROUP INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$78.43M	$7.02	1.89%	$3.54M	33.43x	0.06
AVAV	AEROVIRONMENT INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$5.25B	$186.47	-0.46%	-$16.74M	-42.28x	0.21
LUNR	INTUITIVE MACHINES INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$703.88M	$5.77	-4.94%	$65.04M	1.68x	-0.53
TDG	TRANSDIGM GROUP INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$73.33B	$1,310.49	-0.63%	$3.52B	51.98x	-8.12
KTOS	KRATOS DEFENSE & SECURITY SOLUTIONS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$2.98B	$19.85	0.61%	$74.70M	N/A	0.45
ATRO	ASTRONICS CORP	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$643.53M	$18.47	-0.75%	$26.85M	-24.63x	1.50
KWE	KWESST MICRO SYSTEMS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$4.44M	$0.79	-3.54%	-$4.57M	-0.76x	1.51
ACHR	ARCHER AVIATION INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$1.18B	$3.65	-3.18%	-$466.10M	-2.25x	0.35
DPRO	DRAGANFLY INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$12.60M	$0.26	3.23%	-$17.02M	-0.62x	19.43
LLAP	TERRAN ORBITAL CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$209.32M	$1.04	0.97%	-$94.24M	-1.17x	-2.40
BA	BOEING CO	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$109.58B	$178.51	-1.51%	$2.36B	-50.43x	-8.91
RDW	REDWIRE CORP	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$306.25M	$4.67	6.86%	-$6.15M	-6.49x	-4.28
AULT	AULT ALLIANCE INC	NYSEMKT	Aerospace & Defense	$10.58M	$0.35	-5.38%	-$163.57M	-0.00x	5.37
MRCY	MERCURY SYSTEMS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$1.66B	$27.99	-2.91%	-$63.19M	-11.96x	0.62
SATL	SATELLOGIC INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$132.75M	$1.47	-5.16%	-$33.65M	-2.16x	0.48
DCO	DUCOMMUN INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$846.93M	$57.55	0.63%	$80.77M	47.17x	0.75
VVX	V2X INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$1.55B	$49.12	-0.22%	$231.69M	-377.85x	2.16
SKYH	SKY HARBOUR GROUP CORP	NYSEMKT	Aerospace & Defense	$814.33M	$12.26	2.59%	-$11.24M	-12.51x	3.90
SPPL	SIMPPLE LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	N/A	$0.68	2.56%	-$166.31k	-17.00x	17.05
MNTS	MOMENTUS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$3.58M	$0.55	-1.62%	-$73.97M	-0.01x	6.80
EVEX	EVE HOLDING INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$1.41B	$5.23	-2.06%	-$124.16M	-11.62x	0.62
TGI	TRIUMPH GROUP INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$1.10B	$14.32	0.21%	$137.96M	-18.84x	-3.50
SIDU	SIDUS SPACE INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$14.01M	$3.35	-2.76%	-$12.45M	-0.14x	1.71
ZOOZ	ZOOZ POWER LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$16.02M	$2.71	-6.87%	-$11.52M	-1.36x	0.47
LOAR	LOAR HOLDINGS INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	N/A	$46.00	-1.01%	$108.39M	-766.67x	1.51
AIRI	AIR INDUSTRIES GROUP	NYSEMKT	Aerospace & Defense	$21.19M	$6.39	-12.59%	$2.75M	-9.83x	2.34
SIF	SIFCO INDUSTRIES INC	NYSEMKT	Aerospace & Defense	$19.50M	$3.15	-5.12%	-$184.00k	-2.14x	2.51
SPR	SPIRIT AEROSYSTEMS HOLDINGS INC	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$3.55B	$30.49	-0.91%	-$273.80M	-3.63x	-7.05
AZ	A2Z SMART TECHNOLOGIES CORP	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$13.94M	$0.36	-6.92%	-$10.83M	-1.07x	4.35
ASTR	ASTRA SPACE INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$13.60M	$0.60	-2.60%	-$165.06M	-0.06x	-2.03
KITT	NAUTICUS ROBOTICS INC	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$9.13M	$0.15	-7.55%	-$41.18M	-0.12x	-1.63
EVTL	VERTICAL AEROSPACE LTD	NYSE	Aerospace & Defense	$157.31M	$0.71	-3.53%	-$76.65M	-1.81x	-2.69
LILM	LILIUM NV	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$568.71M	$1.08	-3.57%	-$266.34M	-1.40x	7.42
HOVR	NEW HORIZON AIRCRAFT LTD	NASDAQ	Aerospace & Defense	$36.81M	$2.02	-6.48%	N/A	N/A	-1.42

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 27 points higher than the defense industry average of 28. It passed 18 out of 33 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Virtra has seen its stock return 181.31% over the past year, overperforming other defense stocks by 168 percentage points.

Virtra has an average 1 year price target of $16.00, a downside of -4.25% from Virtra's current stock price of $16.71.

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 24 points higher than the defense industry average of 28. It passed 19 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. Lockheed Martin has seen its stock return 3.47% 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 7.22% from Lockheed Martin's current stock price of $468.88.

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. General Dynamics (NYSE:GD)

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) is the third best defense stock with a Zen Score of 49, which is 21 points higher than the defense industry average of 28. It passed 17 out of 38 due diligence checks and has strong fundamentals. General Dynamics has seen its stock return 40.14% over the past year, overperforming other defense stocks by 27 percentage points.

General Dynamics has an average 1 year price target of $313.91, an upside of 5.89% from General Dynamics's current stock price of $296.44.

General Dynamics stock has a consensus Strong Buy recommendation according to Wall Street analysts. Of the 11 analysts covering General Dynamics, 63.64% have issued a Strong Buy rating, 18.18% have issued a Buy, 18.18% 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 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 5.34%, which is 4 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.54%. 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 99.3% 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 3.38%, which is 2 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.54%. 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 2.94%, which is 1 percentage points higher than the defense industry average of 1.54%.

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 down?

Defense stocks were down -0.3% in the last day, and up 1.38% over the last week.

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

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 53 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Cpi Aerostructures's stock has dropped -22.57% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -36 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 53 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 5 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Innovative Solutions & Support's stock has dropped -4.73% in the past year. It has underperformed other stocks in the defense industry by -18 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 39 points higher than the defense industry average of 18. It passed 4 out of 7 valuation due diligence checks.

Virtra's stock has gained 181.31% in the past year. It has overperformed other stocks in the defense industry by 168 percentage points.

Are defense stocks a good buy now?

55.32% of defense stocks rated by analysts are a strong buy right now. On average, analysts expect defense stocks to rise by 7.18% 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 22.86x.

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.