Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT) Stock Analysis

Lockheed Martin’s primary competitive advantage lies in its scale, technical depth, and entrenched position as a mission-critical supplier to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). In 2024, 73% of revenue came from U.S. government contracts, with the F-35 program alone accounting for 26% of total sales. This customer concentration, while a risk, also creates high switching costs and long-term visibility—Lockheed’s $166.5 billion backlog as of June 2025 is among the largest in the industry.

The company’s breadth across air, land, sea, and space domains enables it to act as a high-end systems integrator, a role few rivals can match. For example, Northrop Grumman and RTX (Raytheon) are strong in select domains (e.g., missiles, sensors), but Lockheed’s portfolio is broader, spanning advanced aircraft, missile defense (e.g., PAC-3, THAAD), and space systems.

Lockheed’s scale supports R&D spending of $1.6 billion in 2024, reinforcing its technological lead in areas such as stealth, hypersonics, and AI-enabled systems. Its deep supplier relationships and in-house manufacturing mitigate supply chain risk, a key differentiator during recent industry disruptions.

Culturally, Lockheed’s “OneLM” approach and focus on digital transformation foster cross-segment collaboration and operational resilience. While the company faces margin pressure and program execution risks, its technical expertise, customer intimacy, and programmatic incumbency remain formidable barriers to entry.