KBR Expands Space Force Partnership: Can Federal Wins Drive Growth?

KBR Inc. KBR announced a significant expansion of its relationship with the U.S. Space Force (USSF) through two firm-fixed-price task orders totaling $103 million. Under this three-year contract, the company will provide the USSF and the Department of the Air Force with AI-enabled analytics and specialized technical expertise to bolster strategic decision-making and personnel readiness. For the USSF/S1 Strategic Support Division, KBR will deliver workforce design, scientific assessments and person-job matching algorithms to align Guardians with mission-critical roles. Following the news, KBR stock rose 1.5% during the trading session yesterday.

The contract builds on KBR’s expanding federal relationships and supports its Mission Technology Solutions segment, which is benefiting from demand across cybersecurity, digital engineering, electronic warfare and space capabilities. In the third quarter of 2025, the company secured several strategic awards, including Space Force digital engineering work and a major NASA recompete for astronaut health and human performance services valued at $2.5 billion, with an additional $1 billion in options. KBR also expanded its footprint with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and deployed its Integration Accelerator digital engineering ecosystem for the U.S. Space Force.

Although procurement timing across government programs remains uneven, the company emphasized that its federal pipeline remains strong, supported by continued investment in space operations, defense modernization and advanced mission-support technologies. These federal wins not only contribute to backlog growth but also improve longer-term revenue visibility, positioning KBR to benefit from sustained U.S. government spending in mission-critical domains.

Overall, KBR’s expanding role in Space Force and broader federal programs reinforces the strategic importance of its Mission Technology Solutions segment. These federal wins strengthen the company’s $23 billion backlog and enhance revenue visibility, helping offset volatility in other areas such as Sustainable Technology Solutions.

KBR’s Competitive Position

KBR operates in a competitive government services and infrastructure landscape alongside established peers such as Fluor Corporation FLR and Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. STRL, particularly across mission-critical programs tied to defense, energy and data center-related investment.

Fluor continues to benefit from healthy activity across its core end markets, supported by strong execution in Energy Solutions, steady progress in Mission Solutions and improving trends within Urban Solutions. The company highlighted momentum in LNG, energy transition initiatives, mining and emerging demand tied to power and data center infrastructure. At the end of the third quarter of 2025, Fluor reported a total backlog of $28.2 billion, with 82% consisting of reimbursable projects, reflecting a lower-risk mix that supports more predictable performance and long-term visibility.

Sterling, meanwhile, is experiencing accelerating momentum in mission-critical infrastructure projects, supported by strong demand across data centers, manufacturing and e-commerce distribution. In the third quarter of 2025, Sterling delivered 32% year-over-year revenue growth, driven by a 58% increase in its E-Infrastructure segment, including 42% organic growth. The E-Infrastructure Solutions segment remains Sterling’s primary growth engine, supported by solid execution, robust project flow and a healthy pipeline.

KBR’s Stock Price Performance & Valuation Trend

Shares of this Texas-based infrastructure service provider have declined 10.6% in the past six months, underperforming the Zacks Engineering - R and D Services industry, the broader Construction sector and the S&P 500 Index.

KBR stock is currently trading at a discount compared with its industry peers, with a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 10.46, as evidenced by the chart below.

Earnings Estimate Revision of KBR

KBR’s earnings estimates for 2026 have trended upward in the past 30 days to $4.17 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for KBR’s 2026 revenues indicates an 11% year-over-year decline, while the same for EPS implies 4.4% growth.

KBR 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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