Why Are Defense Stocks Rising Today?

Shares of defense stocks are rising Monday after the United States seized former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a weekend operation.

Which Defense Stocks Are Moving?

Lockheed Martin Corporation (NASDAQ:LMT), Northrop Grumman Corporation (NASDAQ:NOC), Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR), RTX Corporation (NASDAQ:RTX), General Dynamics Corporation (NASDAQ:GD) and L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LHX) are a couple of the stocks that are trending Monday morning.

All of them except for RTX Corporation are rising.

What Happened This Weekend?

The U.S. seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a weekend operation. The two are currently in New York City awaiting trial for narco-terrorism, drug trafficking, conspiracy, money laundering, and corruption. The U.S. alleges that he led a network to facilitate cocaine trade with terrorist groups for weapons.

U.S. President Donald Trump said that the United States would be running the country, but Venezuela has already sworn in the former vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, who was part of Maduro’s inner circle. Venezuela has also called on the United Nations to hold an emergency session to respond to the attack.

Venezuela’s oil reserves are extremely coveted by other nations. Trump said that the U.S. will be tapping the country’s oil reserves, majority of which is exported to China.

Price Actions

LMT Price Action: Shares were up 2.47% at $508.94 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

NOC Price Action: Shares were up 2.34% at $599.35 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

PLTR Price Action: Shares were up 4.48% at $175.36 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

RTX Price Action: Shares were down 0.26% at $186.76 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

GD Price Action: Shares were up 2.71% at $352.79 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

LHX Price Action: Shares were up 1.86% at $310.14 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

Read Next:

• Why Venezuela’s Vast Oil Reserves Could Reshape US Energy Winners And Losers — Three Stocks To Watch
  

Image: Shutterstock.com