Latest news with #LockheedMartinCorp
NDTV
2 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
"Right Time To Pass Baton": Boeing Top Officer To Step Down
Boeing Co. said Chief Financial Officer Brian West, who helped orchestrate one of the biggest capital raises in US corporate history last year to steady the crisis-stricken planemaker, is stepping down. West is leaving the post in mid-August and will be succeeded by former Lockheed Martin Corp. executive Jesus "Jay" Malave. West will remain an adviser to Chief Executive Officer Kelly Ortberg, Boeing said in a statement on Monday. Both moves are effective August 15, the company said. The leadership change marks the highest-profile personnel switch since Ortberg took over the top role at the planemaker last year. West helped Ortberg navigate a capital squeeze and avoid a possible ratings downgrade to junk status, brought on by a crippling strike last year and a steep slowdown in output after a near-catastrophic accident. "I just felt like it was the right timing to pass the baton," West said in an interview. "The balance sheet is much stronger, operating performance is better, outlook is very encouraging." Boeing shares rose 0.3% after the close of the regular trading session in New York, paring an earlier 2.3% loss. The stock has gained 18% so far this year. A long-time associate of former Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun at General Electric Co., West kept watch over the company's finances as it weathered post-Covid supplier and quality setbacks. West was instrumental in shoring up Boeing's cash reserves with a $24 billion equity sale last year, a near-record for a public company. He added to the stash this year by overseeing the $10.6 billion auction of the Jeppesen unit and other digital assets. In all, Boeing has raised more than $44 billion in debt and equity to bolster its balance sheet since a near-catastrophe on an airborne 737 Max in early 2024 triggered federal investigations and a leadership overhaul. The company has begun ramping up work in its factories under the close supervision of US regulators, a key step towards generating positive cash flow and eventually profits. Ortberg and Malave briefly overlapped late last decade at United Technologies Corp., the aerospace manufacturer now known as RTX Corp. Ortberg ran the Collins Aerospace division while Malave served as vice president and chief financial officer of its Carrier division. Subsequent stints at L3Harris and Lockheed won Malave support in the analyst community, and he had been considered to be a leading contender for the Boeing CFO post once West was ready to step down. Malave left Lockheed Martin days before its April earnings call, advising the company he was "pursuing other opportunities," according to a statement by the defense company. Malave's responsibilities will include heading Boeing's financial strategy, long-range business planning, investor relations, treasury, controller and audit operations, as well as the unit responsible for its global real estate holdings. He will report to Ortberg and serve on the company's executive council. "We're on a nice, steady, predictable path towards recovery, while not pushing too hard," West said. "It's turned out a little bit better than we even expected."
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Analyst Says He's Buying Lockheed Martin (LMT) Amid a ‘Lot of Demand'
Jim Lebenthal from CNBC Investment Committee explained during a recent program why he owns Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE:LMT): 'I think that unfortunately the world is a dangerous place and not getting any safer and I think there's going to be demand particularly with the change in stance from the US versus Europe. There's going to be a lot of demand from Europe for defense products. They're not going to be able to supply them all internally, so companies like Lockheed Martin, the rest of the US defense sector, I think are going to benefit over the next several years.' Photo by Joel Rivera-Camacho on Unsplash Conventum – Alluvium Global Fund stated the following regarding Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) in its Q4 2024 investor letter: 'Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT), the defence contractor, fell 16.3%. Trump's new mate, Elon Musk, may have something to do with this. According to media reports, he has been 'mocking' Lockheed's F-35 fighter jets, which is the mainstay weapon of air defence for the US and its allies. His comments led to questions as to whether the military still needs manned jets, given the increasing capabilities of drones. This was further fuelled by news that Musk's SpaceX is likely to be part of a consortium to provide a new generation of defence contractors, and grab a slice of the USD 850b defence budget at the expense of the three incumbents. Whilst not disregarding this news, we do sense that the share price fall may be an over-reaction. It now trades at a smaller premium to our conservative valuation, and at 2.6% of the Fund, we will be monitoring with a view to increasing our position.' While we acknowledge the potential of LMT as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
25-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Carney Says Canada Met With European Suppliers Amid F-35 Review
Prime Minister Mark Carney said he met with European defense suppliers about jets and submarines, and expects to conclude a review of a major contract for Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 jets as soon as this summer. The remarks came minutes after he signed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization pledge to increase core defense spending as a share of gross domestic product to 3.5% from 2% over a decade. Carney has said Canada should stop sending the vast majority of its defense dollars to the US, after President Donald Trump imposed punishing tariffs and repeatedly said Canada should be an American state.
Mint
25-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
UK to Buy Nuclear-Capable F-35s Amid Trump Threats to Pull Back
The UK will buy at least a dozen new US-made F-35 fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear weapons, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer seeks to curry favor with President Donald Trump while hedging against a pull-back in American security support. Starmer announced plans to purchase the Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35A stealth fighters ahead of the NATO summit in The Hague on Wednesday, an acquisition that would give the Royal Air Force a nuclear role for first time in a quarter century. In recent years, the UK has depended solely on the continuous deployment of nuclear-armed submarines to provide strategic deterrence against rivals such as Russia. The announcement coincides with North Atlantic Treaty Organization plans to adopt an ambitious new defense spending target of 5% of economic output during its meeting. The move aims to placate the US president, who has frequently criticized European countries for underspending on their security. 'We're facing increasing threats, we're facing rising nuclear risks,' Defense Secretary John Healey told Sky News, adding that a Strategic Defense Review published three weeks ago said the UK should consider purchasing the jets. 'This is not the UK taking on a new nuclear weapon, it's playing a part in the established nuclear mission in NATO.' While Starmer's office didn't say how much the UK plans to spend on the aircraft or when they'll be delivered, 12 F-35As would cost about $1 billion under recent prices. The prime minister's office said Britain would host 15% of the supply chain for the jets, supporting some 20,000 jobs. Starmer is hoping that the deal will be seen as a goodwill gesture by Trump, who expresses relatively strong support for the US alliance with Britain and tends to react enthusiastically to big-ticket international arms deals. It's a strategy that has produced mixed results so far, with Trump declining European requests for tougher US sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and ignoring calls not to launch air strikes on Iran over the weekend. The plan is consistent with British and French efforts to shore up Europe's nuclear deterrent in the event that the US pulls back the security umbrella that has protected the continent since the end of World War Two. Europe's ability to defend itself is in further focus after Trump once again cast doubt on his willingness to honor NATO's Article 5, which commits the alliance to mutual defense and has been the cornerstone of transatlantic security for decades. Concerns about aggression by Russian President Vladimir Putin have prompted the UK to quickly warm to the possibility of assuming a greater nuclear role, a subject of fierce political debates over the years. It was less than a decade ago that Starmer's predecessor as Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, refused to back the UK's costly Trident submarine program. Commencing discussions with the US on shouldering more of the burden of NATO's nuclear deterrent was one of the key recommendations in the Strategic Defense Review. The UK is renewing its existing Trident deterrent, investing £15 billion in nuclear warheads and building as many as 12 new nuclear-powered attack submarines as part of the AUKUS defense partnership with Australia and the US. The latest deal would restore the RAF's nuclear strike role for the first time since the UK gave up that capability in 1998. While details of any future weapons-sharing arrangements haven't been made public, past deals preserved US control over the bombs, although they were designated for use by allies in the event of a conflict. The F-35A was certified in 2023 to carry B61-12 thermonuclear gravity bombs, a tactical nuclear weapon that carries a low-yield warhead. Delivering it safely on an enemy target requires a level of stealth that the fighter jet was built to provide. 'You have to get relatively close to targets in order to drop it,' Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow for airpower and technology at RUSI, told the BBC on Wednesday. 'If the RAF is to be given a free-fall nuclear capability as part of the beefed-up deterrent plans, the F-35A is the the only choice.' With assistance from Ellen Milligan, Ailbhe Rea, Piotr Skolimowski and Tony Halpin. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
NDTV
17-06-2025
- Business
- NDTV
Taiwan Completes Sea Trial For 1st Indigenous Submarine In Big Defence Move
Taipei: Taiwan completed the maiden sea trial for its first domestically developed submarine on Tuesday, a major step in a project aimed at strengthening deterrence against the Chinese navy and protecting vital sea lanes in the event of war. Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has made the indigenous submarine programme a key part of an ambitious project to modernise its armed forces as Beijing stages almost daily military exercises to assert its sovereignty. The submarine programme has drawn on expertise and technology from several countries, including the United States and Britain, a breakthrough for diplomatically isolated Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing's territorial claims. Taiwan's CSBC Corp, which is leading construction of what is eventually planned to be eight submarines, said in a statement that the first ship, named the Narwhal, had completed its first test at sea, proving systems including propulsion, ventilation and radar. "CSBC will continue to make adjustments and improvements to the systems based on the test results," it said in a statement, showing pictures of the submarine sailing above water off the southern Taiwanese port of Kaohsiung. Underwater tests will follow, with the depth gradually increased, the company added. The Narwhal had been due to be delivered to the navy last year, joining two existing submarines purchased from the Netherlands in the 1980s, but the programme has been hit with delays. Taiwan has said it hopes to deploy at least two such domestically developed submarines by 2027, and possibly equip later models with missiles. The first submarine, with a price tag of T$49.36 billion ($1.67 billion), will use a combat system by Lockheed Martin Corp and carry U.S.-made Mark 48 heavyweight torpedoes. Taiwan's armed forces are dwarfed by those of China, which has two operational aircraft carriers and ballistic missile submarines and is developing stealth fighter jets. Taiwan is modernisising its military to be able to fight "asymmetric warfare," using mobile and agile systems like submarines, drones and truck-mounted missiles to fend off its much-larger adversary China.
