Booz Allen, CACI, KBR, and Leidos stocks rise on defense sector optimism

Published 02/04/2025, 18:40
© Reuters.

Investing.com -- Shares of prominent consulting and defense firms Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE:BAH), CACI International (NYSE:CACI), KBR (NYSE:KBR), and Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) experienced notable gains in today’s trading session. Booz Allen Hamilton’s stock rose by 6%, CACI International also saw a 6% increase, KBR shares climbed 6%, and Leidos shares advanced by 5%.

The upward movement came after reports from Politico indicated that President Donald Trump had communicated his intention for Elon Musk to scale back his advisory role. This news has seemingly fueled investor optimism in the defense sector, with other consulting, contracting, and defense stocks also seeing gains. Notably, Science Applications (NASDAQ:SAIC) International Corp. (NYSE:SAIC) enjoyed a 3.2% rise.

The S&P Composite 1500 Aerospace & Defense Index reflected this positive sentiment, with Kratos Defense & Security (NASDAQ:KTOS) up 3.5%, AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) gaining 2.6%, AAR (NYSE:AIR) increasing by 2%, Axon Enterprise (NASDAQ:AXON) (NASDAQ:AAXN) up by 1.5%, and Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) rising 1.4%.

However, the White House has contested the accuracy of the Politico report. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt labeled the scoop as "garbage," stating that both Elon Musk and President Trump have publicly affirmed Musk’s commitment to his role as a special government employee until his work at DOGE is concluded.

Despite the White House’s rebuttal, the initial report appears to have already had an impact on market sentiment, contributing to the positive performance of these stocks during the session.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

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