Why Lockheed Martin, Northrop and RTX are KKM's Kilburg's top defense stocks
Speakers
Jeff Kilburg
— Founder and CEO of KKM Financial, CNBC Contributor
Summary
Jeff Kilburg, founder of KKM Financial, joins CNBC's The Exchange to discuss defense and semiconductor trades. He is bullish on aerospace and defense, favoring Lockheed Martin and Boeing, and remains positive on Micron and memory chips as data-center demand grows. He also describes the broad market as cautiously optimistic.
- Defense ETF ITA hits all-time high amid geopolitical tensions.
- Kilburg likes Lockheed Martin as a laggard poised to rebound.
- Boeing is favored after a record $15 billion Alaska Air order.
- Micron is KKM's largest holding in its Mango Growth ETF.
- Memory chips are seen benefiting from the data-center buildout.
- Broad market view is cautiously optimistic with VIX at 14.
Ideas
Defense ETF momentum to continue higher.
Defense stocks are attracting urgent investor interest as geopolitical tensions mount across the globe, and the aerospace & defense ETF is showing strong momentum that should carry it higher.
Lockheed Martin laggard set to rebound.
Lockheed Martin is an Essential 40 holding and a critical U.S. name; it lagged in 2024 but is expected to bounce back, providing a solution to geopolitical tensions.
Boeing boosted by record Alaska Air order.
Boeing is a great name here, supported by the largest-ever Alaska Air order worth $15 billion, and momentum in aerospace and defense should push it higher.
Micron wins from data-center memory demand.
Micron is the largest holding in KKM's Mango Growth ETF, up over 240% last year and another 20% to start January 2026; a breather or profit-taking makes sense, but the data-center race and rising competition are driving memory demand.
Memory demand driven by data centers.
The race toward data centers and increasing competition is creating a run toward memory, and investors should be concerned if they do not own any memory exposure.
