HII Secures Contract to Support USS Harry S. Truman Aircraft Carrier

Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc.’s HII business unit, Newport News Shipbuilding, recently won a contract valued at nearly $97.7 million for additional long-lead materials to support the refueling and complex overhaul of the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) aircraft carrier. 

The work will be carried out in Newport News, VA, with completion anticipated by September 2026. The deal has been provided by the Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, D.C.

HII’s Expertise in Aircraft Carrier Development

Aircraft carriers play a crucial role in a nation’s ability to command, control and coordinate naval operations while protecting its coastlines. As the United States continues to lead the global naval defense sector, Huntington Ingalls’ position as one of the key suppliers of U.S. aircraft carriers remains highly significant.

Huntington Ingalls’ Newport News unit has built more than 31 aircraft carriers for the U.S. Navy since 1933, including all 10 Nimitz-class aircraft carriers currently in active service and the first ship of the next-generation Gerald R. Ford-class (CVN 78) aircraft carriers.

To reinforce its leadership in U.S. naval defense, HII is currently developing the next-generation Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers. With decades of experience in naval shipbuilding, Huntington Ingalls benefits from a steady stream of contracts, supporting strong revenue growth prospects.

Growth Outlook & Opportunities for Other Defense Stocks

Rising tensions between nations have led governments worldwide to enhance their naval capabilities by investing more in naval vessels, including aircraft carriers, to strengthen their maritime warfare readiness.

To this end, the Mordor Intelligence firm projects the aircraft carrier ship market to witness a CAGR of 12.75% during 2025-2030. This growth outlook is expected to favor Huntington Ingalls, the United States’ largest shipbuilder and its sole manufacturer of aircraft carriers.

Other defense players that can gain from the expanding aircraft carrier ship market are discussed below:

RTX Corporation RTX: Its Raytheon business unit provides the SPY-6 radar family, which is deployed on U.S. Navy aircraft carriers. These radars offer advanced air and missile defense capabilities across seven different classes of warships.

RTX has a long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate of 10.21%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 sales stands at $87.07 billion, which calls for an increase of 7.8%.

BAE Systems plc BAESY: The company designs, commissions, builds, repairs and maintains a broad spectrum of complex naval vessels, including aircraft carriers. Its Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers are the largest warships ever built in the United Kingdom.

BAESY boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 14.57%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 sales is pinned at $40.79 billion, which implies a rise of 63.3%.

Lockheed Martin Corp. LMT: The company’s AN/SLQ-32 electronic warfare systems are installed on all U.S. aircraft carriers, offering early detection, threat analysis, warning and defense against anti-ship missiles.

LMT has a long-term earnings growth rate of 11.94%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 sales stands at $74.44 billion, which calls for an increase of 4.8%.

HII Stock Price Movement

In the past six months, HII shares have climbed 38% compared with the industry’s growth of 14.1%.

HII’s Zacks Rank

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

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