RTX Corporation (RTX) Doubles Down on Defense Manufacturing — Is the Stock Still a Buy?

On August 27, RTX Corporation (NYSE: RTX ) announced that its Raytheon unit had completed a $50 million expansion of its Forest, Mississippi, manufacturing facility.

The project is set to expand the production capacity for vital electronic warfare and radar systems, including the Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB) and other airborne radar programs.

For investors, the question remains whether the doubling down on defense manufacturing makes RTX a stock to buy or is the growth already priced in?

The site has now become one of the largest defense manufacturing facilities in the state, encompassing 445,000 square feet.

The expansion will serve as a hub for the production of Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB) pods for the U.S. Navy and the Australian government, alongside other airborne radar programs. It is expected to create around 100 high-skill jobs.

RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX) has spent around $280 million over the past decade on three facility expansion projects. The recent investment can be seen as a sign of confidence considering the company's record backlog and robust defense demand.

RTX ended the second quarter with a backlog of $289 billion, increasing 22% from a year earlier. This included a defense backlog of $119 billion, while commercial aerospace orders stood at $170 billion.

The expansion in Mississippi is tangible proof of the defense contractor's capacity investment for programs that are sitting in the backlog.