Defense Stocks Higher After U.S. Military Action in Venezuela

Core Viewpoint - Shares of defense companies Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT) and Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc (HII) have risen following the U.S. attack on Venezuela and the capture of leader Nicolás Maduro, with Wall Street betting on limited geopolitical escalation [1] Group 1: Stock Performance - LMT shares increased by 2.1%, trading at $507.57, with a 17.7% gain over the past nine months, bouncing off the $480 support level [2] - HII shares rose by 4%, trading at $363.86, reaching a record high of $365.92, and achieving an 80% gain for 2025, marking its best annual performance since 2013, with over 98% increase in the last nine months [3] Group 2: Options Activity - Both LMT and HII are experiencing unusual options activity, with LMT seeing double the typical call volume and HII seeing triple [4][5] - The most active options for LMT is the weekly 1/9 500-strike put, while for HII, it is the June 460 call, with new positions being opened in both [4][5]