Defence & Space: 24 October 2026

• 01

  Lockheed Martin jumped 9% after reporting a record backlog and lifting its outlook.

  A record order book is the clearest sign yet that Pentagon spending is turning into signed work for the big US prime contractors. RTX rose 2% and Northrop Grumman 3% alongside it, and L3Harris and HII are also reported adding to their backlogs, so the read-across runs through the prime contractors and the suppliers that feed them. L3Harris and HII report on 29 October and General Dynamics on 30 October, which will show whether the same pattern holds.

  Primes · Naval · Electronics· LMT, RTX, NOC, LHX, HII·Source 1·Source 2

  Screener matches in Primes and Electronics · Friday's close, 23 Oct

  • Lockheed MartinLMT

    All six checks pass, with the price 12.2% above a flat 200-day average.

    Shortlisted
• 02

  Leonardo and Rheinmetall have reportedly won Italian Army contracts worth about $4 billion.

  It is a large European land-forces order shared between two of the continent's main defence groups, and it shows rearmament money reaching signed contracts. The first place it lands is land systems and munitions suppliers.

  Primes · Land and munitions· LDO.MI, RHM.DE·Source

  Closest to a screener match in Land and munitions · Friday's close, 23 Oct

  • KongsbergKOG.OL

    Three checks short of a pick.

    Not a match

  • RheinmetallRHM.DE

    Three checks short of a pick.

    Not a match
• 03

  Saab and Thales both published fresh results, with Saab saying it is positioned to capture growing demand.

  Saab's Q3 report covers January to September, and Thales reported its order intake and sales to 30 September. Both are European defence electronics names, so their order books are a direct read on whether demand for sensors and systems is turning into orders.

  Electronics· SAAB-B.ST, HO.PA·Source 1·Source 2

  Closest to a screener match in Electronics · Friday's close, 23 Oct

  • TeledyneTDY

    One check short of a pick.

    Not a match

  • SaabSAAB-B.ST

    One check short of a pick.

    Not a match
• 04

  Rocket Lab launched its 98th Electron mission.

  This is routine news, but it shows a small-launch business flying regularly, which is the part of space that earns revenue now. It is a cadence data point for the launch end of the space chain, not a change in the outlook.

  Space· RKLB·Source

  Closest to a screener match in Space · Friday's close, 23 Oct

  • IridiumIRDM

    Two checks short of a pick.

    Not a match

  • KarmanKRMN

    Three checks short of a pick.

    Not a match

Published 24/10/2026, 08:03 UTC · claude-sonnet-5-5