# What Are Defense Stocks? > Learn what defense contractors do, why civilian business mix matters, and how to compare company market caps without confusing size with contract revenue. Source: MarketCapLens — https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/what-are-defense-stocks Updated: 2026-11-11 **Defense stocks**, on MarketCapLens, are U.S.-listed contractors supplying defense platforms, aerospace systems, communications, and related services. The [live defense stocks comparison](https://www.marketcaplens.com/defense-stocks) ranks the selected companies by market capitalization and shows their available price and market-cap histories. Defense contractors supply aircraft, ships, missiles, sensors, communications, and mission systems to governments. Several also sell commercial aerospace products. This list focuses on established diversified contractors rather than treating every aerospace company as a defense specialist. ## Which companies qualify? We select established U.S.-listed contractors with substantial defense platforms, aerospace systems, or mission-related electronics and services businesses. This is a focused comparison rather than a complete defense-industry directory. Diversified companies can also sell civilian products, and their full market cap is included. Smaller suppliers and software firms are not automatically included because they have a defense customer. Current ranking coverage remains a separate listing and size test. The business roles on the live page explain why each member belongs: - **Aircraft & mission platforms:** [Lockheed Martin (LMT)](https://www.marketcaplens.com/company/LMT), [Northrop Grumman (NOC)](https://www.marketcaplens.com/company/NOC). - **Aerospace & defense systems:** [RTX (RTX)](https://www.marketcaplens.com/company/RTX). - **Marine, land & aerospace:** [General Dynamics (GD)](https://www.marketcaplens.com/company/GD). - **Communications & electronics:** [L3Harris Technologies (LHX)](https://www.marketcaplens.com/company/LHX). This is a selected comparison, not an exhaustive worldwide industry directory. The [ranking eligibility rules](https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/how-the-ranking-works) determine which listed companies appear in the current figures. A company can belong to a Featured list and also appear in its broader [Industrials sector ranking](https://www.marketcaplens.com/sectors/industrials). The two views answer different questions. ## What drives these businesses? Backlog describes work or orders expected for future delivery under each company’s reporting rules. It is not cash already received or profit already earned. Some amounts depend on later funding, customer options, or work that can be changed or canceled. Compare definitions as well as the size of the number. Contract terms also allocate risk. Under a fixed-price contract, the contractor generally agrees to deliver for a stated price and can bear overruns. A cost-reimbursement contract repays eligible costs under its terms, often with a separately defined fee. Neither removes execution risk. Delivery schedules, costs, and customer payments determine how work turns into revenue and cash. ## What can the ranking leave out? Government budgets, procurement decisions, export permissions, and program performance affect results. Cost overruns or delays on a large project can outweigh strong demand elsewhere. Commercial aerospace exposure also means that total company value is not a clean measure of defense spending alone. The largest company is not necessarily the cheapest or the most profitable. The [difference between market cap and share price](https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/market-cap-vs-stock-price) matters here: a low dollar price per share says little about the value of the whole business. ## How to read the figures and charts Market cap measures the whole company’s equity value. The list’s combined cap adds the current values of members present in the ranking; each company’s weight is its cap divided by that total. The historical stack includes companies when usable history begins, so new listings and share-count changes can move the total as well as prices. It is not the return on a fixed portfolio. Price-performance lines use a common starting date and exclude dividends. A 100% increase doubles the starting price; a 200% increase triples it. The live comparison states its dates, included names, and exclusions. Missing history is not a zero return. See [price return versus total return](https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/price-return-vs-total-return) for what income changes. The main performance comparison uses companies with a full five-year price history. A newer listing can remain in the current table even when it cannot appear in that chart. Five-year return columns still require the full period. Documented predecessor-company history is excluded where it would misrepresent the current listed business. ## Related comparisons For adjacent businesses, compare [space & satellite stocks](https://www.marketcaplens.com/space-stocks), [cybersecurity stocks](https://www.marketcaplens.com/cybersecurity-stocks), and [power grid stocks](https://www.marketcaplens.com/power-grid-stocks). A company can qualify for more than one list, so adding their combined market caps would count overlapping companies more than once. The [Featured directory](https://www.marketcaplens.com/featured) explains each list’s scope and links to its live comparison and guide. For general education only. Nothing here is investment advice. ## Frequently asked questions ### What are defense stocks? U.S.-listed contractors supplying defense platforms, aerospace systems, communications, and related services. ### Why include companies with civilian aerospace businesses? Substantial defense operations can qualify a diversified contractor. The table uses its entire market cap, with no attempt to allocate equity value between civilian and military segments. ### Is this the same as the Industrials sector? No. Industrials includes many unrelated businesses. This is a smaller editorial comparison of selected defense contractors, while Space and Cybersecurity have their own Featured lists. ## Sources - [Lockheed Martin annual report: contracts, backlog, and execution risk](https://www.lockheedmartin.com/content/dam/lockheed-martin/eo/documents/annual-reports/lockheed-martin-annual-report-2025.pdf) - [Global X: defense-industry reference universe](https://www.globalxetfs.com/funds/shld) - [Lockheed Martin: business overview](https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/who-we-are.html) - [RTX: business overview](https://www.rtx.com/our-company) References explain the concepts; MarketCapLens supplies the examples and calculator assumptions. See https://www.marketcaplens.com/about for who checks the numbers. ## Related guides - [What are space and satellite stocks?](https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/what-are-space-stocks) - [What are cybersecurity stocks?](https://www.marketcaplens.com/learn/what-are-cybersecurity-stocks)