MW Another missile maker partners with the Trump administration, and the stock rises to record heights

By Tomi Kilgore

RTX's Raytheon unit announces five deals with the Pentagon to boost capacity and deliveries of Tomahawk and interceptor missiles

Raytheon parent RTX's stock rises toward another all-time high after agreements with the Trump administration to boost missile capacity and speed delivery.

Shares of RTX rose further into record territory in early Wednesday trading after the company became the latest defense contractor to announce agreements with the Trump administration to build more missiles, and deliver them faster.

The company $(RTX)$ is the latest to benefit from what the U.S. government is calling an "Arsenal of Freedom," with stated aims of building up and revitalizing the military. This comes as the Trump administration has been pushing to increase the defense budget by 50% to $1.5 trillion.

RTX's Raytheon business said it entered into five agreements, with durations of up to seven years, with the government to boost capacity and speed up deliveries of missiles, including land-attack and maritime-strike variants of its Tomahawk missiles and missile interceptors.

"These agreements redefine how government and industry can partner to speed the delivery of critical technologies and are a direct result of the administration's Acquisition Transformation Strategy and commitment to deliver the best technologies faster," said RTX CEO Chris Calio.

RTX's stock rose 1% in premarket trading and was headed for a 10th record close in 2026. It had already gained 11% this year, after rocketing 58.5% in 2025 to post the best year for the stock since a 67.7% surge in 1976.

Last week, Lockheed Martin's stock (LMT) climbed into record territory after the company also said it was partnering with Trump's "Department of War," as the administration calls the Defense Department, to quadruple production of certain interceptor missiles, just weeks after reaching an agreement to triple production of another type of interceptors.

Also in January, L3Harris Technologies shares $(LHX)$ surged to a record after the defense contractor received a $1 billion investment from the Trump administration as part of a "partnership" to build more solid-rocket motors used in defense missiles.

These so-called partnerships mark a reversal in tone after President Donald Trump seemed to go after the defense industry earlier this year, saying defense contractors were returning too much money to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks, rather than investing in plants and equipment.

Instead, the Trump administration's increased focus on defense has been a boon for the sector, as the iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF ITA has climbed 9.2% so far this year after a run-up of 47.7% in 2025. Of the ETF's 40 equity components, 37 have reached 52-week highs this year.

-Tomi Kilgore

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February 04, 2026 08:51 ET (13:51 GMT)

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