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Lockheed Martin is the world's largest defense contractor, building fighter jets, missiles, and space systems for governments, mainly the United States.
Lockheed Martin is the biggest defense company on the planet, and its main customer is the United States government. It builds fighter jets like the F-35, missile systems like the Patriot and THAAD, and satellites and other space hardware. When a country needs weapons and the systems that guide them, Lockheed Martin is usually one of the first calls.
The business runs on long-term contracts, not quick sales. A fighter jet program can take years to develop, build, and deliver, and the government pays along the way. That makes revenue steadier than a typical manufacturer's, but it also means Lockheed Martin depends heavily on government budgets and political decisions. Its biggest segment by far is aeronautics, home of the F-35, which is the most expensive weapons program in history and accounts for a huge share of sales. The company also runs a rotary and mission systems unit (helicopters, radar, ship systems), a missiles and fire control unit, and a space unit. Competitors include RTX, Northrop Grumman, and Boeing, though the F-35 has no real rival at scale. Lockheed Martin makes money by winning contracts and then performing on them, often with cost-plus or fixed-price terms that reward efficiency — or punish overruns. The F-35 has been a cash machine but also a source of headaches: it has faced years of cost overruns, delays, and maintenance complaints, and critics argue it is too expensive to fly and sustain. The company has also drawn scrutiny over its lobbying and its close ties to the Pentagon. Still, demand is strong, especially as global tensions rise and allies buy American weapons.
Lockheed Martin spends heavily on research and development and returns a lot of cash to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. It has raised its dividend for many years and bought back billions in stock — in recent years reducing its share count by several percent annually. That cash comes from steady government payments, which is why the stock is often treated as a defensive holding. The main risks are budget cuts, program cancellations, and the possibility that a rival — or a cheaper drone — changes what militaries want to buy.
Saved answer · last researched 1 Nov 2026