Lockheed Crushed Earnings. The Stock Needed That. -- Barrons.com

By Al Root

Lockheed Martin delivered the beat-and-raise quarter the stock and the sector badly needed.

The defense contractor reported second-quarter earnings per share of $7.94 from sales of $20.1 billion on Thursday morning. Wall Street was looking for earnings per share of $7.19 from sales of $19.3 billion.

A year ago, Lockheed reported earnings per share of closer to $7.30, adjusted for charges, from sales of $18.2 billion.

Sales and operating profits improved in each of the company's divisions: aerospace, missiles, helicopters, and space.

Backlog grew to $230 billion, a record and up from $186 billion at the end of the first quarter. Backlog includes new contracts to increase missile production for the Defense Department.

For 2026, Lockheed now expects earnings per share of about $30.30 from sales of about $80.8 billion. Prior guidance given in April called for earnings per share of closer to $29.80 and sales of $78.8 billion.

Wall Street projects earnings per share of about $29.90 and sales of about $79.1 billion.

The company is growing, and faster than expected, with more growth coming down the road. The quarter and outlook appear solid.

Still, coming into Thursday trading, Lockheed stock was down about 22% since the start of fighting in Iran. Investors have worried that defense spending is peaking, with a Democratic-controlled House after midterm elections pressuring the budget.

"We continue to see support for defense to be bipartisan," says CFO Evan Scott. "If you look historically, I think that that's absolutely been the case."

The government will continue to spend on missiles, missile defense, as well as manned and unmanned weapons. Whether or not investors buy into that idea on Thursday is hard to say. The Lockheed quarterly report, however, should help calm their nerves.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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July 23, 2026 06:30 ET (10:30 GMT)