The Boeing Company BA recently secured a modification contract involving the P-8A aircraft. The award has been provided by the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Orlando, FL. 

Details of the Deal

Valued at $133.5 million, the contract is expected to be completed by October 2028. The majority of the work related to this deal will be carried out in St. Louis, MO. 

Per the terms of the deal, Boeing will be involved in the procurement of P-8A training systems phase two software development, integration and device installation for the government of South Korea. This procurement will include one operational flight trainer, one weapons tactics trainer, one maintenance electronic classroom, and one training system support center, as well as associated electronic classroom instructor-led training.

As part of this agreement, Boeing will also provide logistics, engineering, and management technical support required for the procurement, construction, inspection and acceptance of the hardware for the P-8A training systems.

What’s Favoring Boeing?

Escalating geopolitical tensions are prompting nations to bolster their defense capabilities, resulting in a surge in military expenditures. With the growing threat of regional conflicts and evolving security challenges, governments are prioritizing investments in cutting-edge military technology. 
A significant portion of this spending is allocated toward advanced military aircraft, which play a vital role in modern air warfare strategies, encompassing surveillance, combat and strategic deterrence. Consequently, the demand for next-generation fighter jets and patrol aircraft, such as the P-8A, and military training jets is rising as countries seek to enhance their aerial dominance. 

This is likely to have prompted the Mordor Intelligence firm to forecast a compound annual growth rate of 4.7% for the global military aviation market during the 2025-2030 period.

Such strong market prospects offer solid growth opportunities for Boeing, given its prominent position in the defense industry and its extensive range of combat-proven aircraft programs. Notably, Boeing’s renowned military aircraft programs include the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, KC-46A Tanker, T-7A Red Hawk, in addition to the P-8 Poseidon aircraft. 

With these programs in its portfolio, Boeing enjoys a steady inflow of orders from the Pentagon and other U.S. allies, including the latest one. Such steady order flows must have enabled the Boeing Defense, Space & Security segment to secure a solid backlog of $64.02 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024.

Opportunities for Other Defense Stocks

Other defense companies that are likely to benefit from the expanding global military aviation market are discussed below:

Northrop Grumman Corporation NOC: Northrop is a provider of manned and unmanned air systems. It builds some of the world’s most advanced aircraft, like the E-2C Hawkeye 2000, A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-5 Tiger Fighter Jet and many more.

Northrop has a long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate of 4.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NOC’s 2025 sales indicates year-over-year growth of 3%.

Embraer ERJ: The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of the most advanced aircraft in the combat market, which includes the A-29 Super Tucano light attack and advanced trainer and the C-390 Millennium military multi-mission aircraft.

ERJ delivered an average earnings surprise of 138.39% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ERJ’s 2025 sales indicates year-over-year growth of 15.1%.

Lockheed Martin Corporation LMT: It is the manufacturer of some of the most advanced military jets in the world. Its key jet programs include the F-35 Lightning II, F-22 Raptor, F-16 Fighting Falcon and C-130 Hercules.

Lockheed Martin has a long-term earnings growth rate of 10.6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for LMT’s 2025 sales implies year-over-year growth of 4.6%.

BA Stock Price Movement

Boeing’s shares have gained 6% in the past month compared with the industry’s 16.4% growth.

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BA’s Zacks Rank

Boeing currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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The Boeing Company (BA) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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