Rheinmetall AG

European stock exchange-traded funds posted positive net flows in July, their first month of inflows since the US-Iran conflict started in late February, according to Bloomberg data. BlackRock reported that its European equities products attracted $4.4 billion in July, describing the flows as anti-momentum allocations away from volatile chipmaker stocks. A strong earnings season and easing oil prices have renewed investor appetite for the region, with companies in the Stoxx Europe 600 on track for 22% year-on-year earnings growth in the second quarter, the strongest since 2022. UBS raised its year-end target for the Stoxx 600 to 690 points from 630, implying roughly 5% further upside, while Goldman Sachs projects 168% upside for UK clean energy developer Ceres Power and 102% for German defense contractor Rheinmetall over 12 months. The Stoxx 600 has gained 10.7% in 2026 and touched a record 663.4 points this month, with Germany's Dax, the FTSE 100, France's Cac 40, and Spain's Ibex also reaching highs.

Rheinmetall reported second-quarter sales of 3.289 billion euros, up nearly 70% year-over-year, while order intake surged 476% to 11.371 billion euros, pushing the backlog to a record 80.4 billion euros. The operating result more than doubled to 562 million euros, yielding a margin of 17.1%, though operational free cash flow was deeply negative at minus 1.331 billion euros due to inventory build-up. The company revised its full-year 2026 sales guidance to between 13.7 billion and 14.2 billion euros, with an operating margin target of around 19%, while reducing capital expenditure guidance to about 8% to 9% of sales. Management confirmed that the 12.4-billion-euro Arminius Boxer vehicle contract is expected to be signed by year-end, potentially bringing a down payment of over 3 billion euros, and addressed the unexpected cancellation of the F-126 frigate program, which trimmed the sales outlook by 300 million euros.

Ukraine is set to take delivery of new long-range artillery shells by late summer, extending the kill zone along the front and increasing pressure on Russia. The first batch will be used with the standard 155-millimeter guns Ukraine already operates, capable of reaching at least 60 kilometers, compared with the typical 30 to 40 kilometer range of conventional artillery. Laser-guided variants will also boost accuracy. Meanwhile, a new generation of shells equipped with ramjet engines is under development and could extend range beyond 150 kilometers. The Ukrainian government has secured over 540 million US dollars in funding from Norway, Denmark, Lithuania, Luxembourg, and Spain, as well as through the Czech Initiative, while Germany has pledged an additional 300 million euros, equivalent to roughly 50,000 rounds. Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, said Ukraine's annual requirement for long-range shells could reach 1.2 million rounds.

German armsmaker Rheinmetall reported record profit as Europe's rearmament drive boosted results. Second-quarter core profit roughly doubled to 562 million euros, beating analyst expectations by about 20 percent, while revenue rose almost 70 percent to 3.3 billion euros. The company said all segments contributed to the improvement and operating metrics were significantly exceeded. Rheinmetall shares were up almost nine percent at 1310 GMT before paring gains, though they have fallen about 40 percent since a peak last October amid investor concerns over the durability of defence spending and the company's positioning in cutting-edge equipment.

German stocks moved higher on Tuesday, with the benchmark DAX up 85.61 points or 0.34% at 25,510.02 by noon, extending gains from the previous session. Automakers were broadly higher following reports that France and Germany are pursuing a new initiative to revive the auto industry, with Volkswagen surging 3.6% and Mercedes-Benz rallying 4%. Mercedes-Benz Group reported a second-quarter net profit of 1.065 billion euros, up from 915 million euros a year earlier, while Daimler Truck Holding and BMW moved up 3.75% and 3.7% respectively. Among other gainers, Rheinmetall jumped more than 4% and MTU Aero Engines climbed 3.7%, while Siemens Energy and Infineon Technologies shed 2% and 1.9% respectively.

The global robotic warfare market is projected to grow from $34.50 billion in 2025 to $78.00 billion by 2035, at a compound annual growth rate of 8.5%, according to a new report by SNS Insider. The aerial platform segment led the market in 2025 with a 38% revenue share, driven by unmanned aerial systems for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and combat, while the underwater segment is expected to be the fastest-growing. North America dominated the market in 2025, with the United States accounting for about 84% of regional revenue, and the Asia-Pacific region is forecast to record the highest growth rate during the forecast period. Key players include Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, BAE Systems, and Rheinmetall.

Lockheed Martin signed a memorandum of understanding at the NATO Summit Defense Industry Forum to address Europe's demand for locally produced munitions. The MoU, backed by the US and German governments, is a step toward a joint venture to set up Europe's first center for manufacturing, integrating, and distributing ATACMS missiles across NATO forces. Production is expected to be based at Rheinmetall's Unterluess site in Germany, with rocket motor and guided missile component production targeted to begin as early as 2027. This would be the first ATACMS production facility outside the US. Lockheed Martin will continue operating its existing ATACMS line in Camden, Arkansas, until the transition is complete, driven by strong global demand for the missile system.

NATO allies have officially announced more than €50 billion, approximately $57 billion, in massive new defense procurement deals at the 2026 Ankara summit, driven by pressure from Washington for European self-reliance. This comes in addition to separate military aid packages including a €70 billion pledge for Ukraine. Total defense and security spending by European allies and Canada has already reached around 4% of GDP, progressing toward a 5% target by 2035. Major deals include Lockheed Martin and Rheinmetall establishing the first European ATACMS missile facility, RTX doubling Stinger missile production through European partnerships, and a new $40 billion NATO Drone Edge initiative for counter-uncrewed systems over five years. Analysts recommend defense ETFs like iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF, Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF, and Themes Transatlantic Defense ETF to capture the expected multi-year revenue supercycle while mitigating single-stock risks.

Omnia Training has been awarded a £2 billion contract by the UK Ministry of Defence to serve as the British Army's Strategic Training Partner and deliver the Army's Collective Training System. The Raytheon UK-led consortium, which includes Capita, Cervus, Rheinmetall UK and Skyral, will deliver the 15-year contract in partnership with the British Army. The programme will provide soldiers with an integrated, digitally enabled collective training system that combines virtual, synthetic and data-driven environments to upgrade traditional live exercises. The contract will create 270 jobs and sustain a further 150 jobs.

The White House announced that President Donald Trump secured more than $3 billion in major defense deals and joint ventures at the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara. Lockheed Martin will establish a Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Sustainment Facility in Europe and partner with Rheinmetall on Army Tactical Missile System production in Europe. Northrop Grumman will sign letters of interest with 10 nations to purchase MQ-4C Tritons, expanding NATO’s Allied Ground Surveillance program into the maritime domain. RTX and the Department of War will launch an Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile feasibility study to expand production in Europe, while Germany and the Netherlands will buy Raytheon’s Stinger missile with European production as a condition of the bulk procurement, aiming to double Stinger production volume by 2030. Boeing and Rheinmetall-Italy will explore a partnership to expand production and sustainment for Boeing’s Small Diameter Bomb for Europe, and Anduril will commit to providing Poland with Barracuda-500 missiles, leading to a new production line in the country.

Rheinmetall secured a contract from Ukraine for artillery shells and propellant charges valued in the high double-digit millions of euros. The contract value will be recognized in the second quarter of 2026, with completion scheduled for the first quarter of 2027. Production has already started at Rheinmetall's facilities in Spain. The win comes a week after Rheinmetall shares dropped sharply when Germany canceled its F126 frigate program, a deal that would have made Rheinmetall the lead contractor on a project worth 12.8 billion euros.

THEON International Plc announced total new order intake of approximately €70 million, with a significant portion coming from Rheinmetall for the Bundeswehr's Future Soldier program, including a new firm order and exercised options for products from its A.R.M.E.D ecosystem portfolio. Order intake accelerated in the second quarter to around €153 million, plus an additional €27 million in options, bringing year-to-date order intake to roughly €223 million with a further €68 million in options, figures that reflect the full consolidation of Kappa and Harder Digital order intake. THEON expects further acceleration in the second half of the year, mainly toward the end of the fourth quarter, and reiterated its guidance of maintaining an organic book-to-bill ratio above 1.0x for fiscal year 2026. The company also highlighted recent strategic moves, including a joint venture with Safran to enter drone technologies, in which THEON will hold a 51% stake with equal governance rights, and an initial agreement to acquire HGH Systèmes Infrarouges for an enterprise value of about €300 million, marking its entry into counter-drone systems.

The German DAX index edged higher on Friday as investors reacted to the abrupt cancellation of US-Iran peace talks scheduled for Switzerland. The benchmark was up 82.87 points, or 0.33%, at 25,110.93 after earlier reaching 25,176.56. Rheinmetall climbed 2.2%, BMW gained 1.8%, and Infineon Technologies added 1.7%, while Volkswagen fell 4.2% as it traded ex-dividend. Data from Destatis showed German producer prices rose 0.3% month-on-month, driven by higher intermediate goods and energy costs.

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems and Rheinmetall have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore cooperative production of Vektrex, a maneuvering 155 mm precision-guided munition. The agreement was announced at Eurosatory 2026 and aims to address growing international demand for artillery modernization, long-range strike capability, and munitions replenishment. Vektrex extends engagement range two to three times beyond conventional artillery projectiles and integrates with fielded 39- and 52-caliber 155 mm systems, enabling rapid coalition interoperability. The collaboration will assess Vektrex as a cost-effective standoff capability and leverage Rheinmetall's NATO-compliant manufacturing infrastructure for large-scale series production.

Vantor and Rheinmetall have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to advance sovereign spatial intelligence capabilities for Germany and other European nations. The partnership, planned as a joint venture in Germany, aims to deliver a unified spatial intelligence platform that combines satellite and drone imagery with mapping data to create a precise 3D situational picture for battlefield operations. The joint capability will integrate Vantor's Tensorglobe platform into Rheinmetall command-and-control systems, enabling European customers to task Vantor's imaging satellite constellation and receive imagery in near real time, as fast as 15 minutes after collection. The platform will process and fuse data from numerous sources, including Synthetic Aperture Radar, electro-optical, and infrared sensors, to create a trusted common operating system. The initiative supports Germany's sovereign defence requirements and existing and emerging European intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance programs, giving commanders decision advantage at mission speed.

Boeing's Defense, Space & Security segment booked $9 billion in orders during the first quarter, pushing its backlog to $86 billion. The unit generated $7.6 billion in revenues, a 21% year-over-year increase, driven by contracts for E-7 Wedgetail development and international demand for KC-46 aircraft. Boeing also signed a seven-year framework agreement to expand PAC-3 Seeker production and announced a partnership with Rheinmetall to offer the MQ-28 Ghost Bat to Germany. Management continues to focus on improving operational performance and reducing costs across major defense programs, positioning the segment as a potential growth driver amid rising global defense budgets.