Would I buy defence right now?

Screening Filters

1. Market Cap ≥ $2 Billion ('market_cap': {'min': '2000000000'})

   • Purpose: Focus on larger, more established companies.
   • Rationale: For a sector-level question like “Is it advisable to invest in defense stocks?”, it makes sense to examine mid‑ to large‑cap names that:
     • Have more stable cash flows
     • Are more likely to have long‑term contracts (especially with governments)
     • Tend to be less volatile and less risky than small speculative defense stocks
       This better reflects the “investability” of the defense sector for most investors.

2. Price Above 200‑Day Moving Average ('moving_average_relationship': ['PriceAboveMA200'])

   • Purpose: Include stocks that are in a longer‑term uptrend.
   • Rationale: If you’re asking whether it’s a good time to invest in defense, it’s useful to look at names where the market is already signaling strength. Trading above the 200‑day moving average suggests:
     • Positive long‑term momentum
     • Less likelihood that the stock is in a major downtrend
       This doesn’t guarantee future returns, but it screens out many technically weak or clearly deteriorating names.

3. Industry Focus ('industry': ['Aerospace & Defense', 'Cybersecurity', 'Professional & Commercial Services', 'Government Activity'])

   • Purpose: Concentrate on businesses tied to defense and government spending.
   • Rationale:
     • Aerospace & Defense: Core defense contractors (weapons systems, aircraft, missiles, etc.)—direct answer to “defense stocks.”
     • Cybersecurity: Modern defense increasingly includes cyber warfare and digital infrastructure protection; many investors treat cyber as a defense sub‑theme.
     • Professional & Commercial Services / Government Activity: Covers contractors and service providers whose revenues are heavily linked to government and defense-related contracts (logistics, consulting, IT for defense agencies).
       Together, these industries map out the broader “defense complex,” not just weapons manufacturers, which gives a more complete picture of the sector’s investability.

4. Defense-Related Themes ('themes': ['Aerospace & Defense', 'National Defense', 'Cybersecurity'])

   • Purpose: Reinforce sector relevance by capturing stocks explicitly tagged to defense/national security themes.
   • Rationale: Theme tags help:
     • Catch companies whose primary GICS/industry label might be broad, but whose actual business is defense‑oriented
     • Ensure the list truly reflects companies that benefit from defense/national security spending trends
       This is directly aligned with the user’s interest in “defense stocks” rather than unrelated industrials.

5. Listed on Major U.S. Exchanges ('list_exchange': ['XNYS', 'XNAS', 'XASE'])

   • Purpose: Limit to NYSE, NASDAQ, and NYSE American listings.
   • Rationale:
     • These exchanges typically offer better liquidity, transparency, and regulatory oversight
     • They are the default investable universe for many retail and institutional investors
       For a question about whether it’s advisable to invest, focusing on widely traded, regulated markets makes the analysis more relevant and practical.

6. Non‑Negative Annual Revenue Growth ('annual_revenue_yoy_growth': {'min': '0'})

   • Purpose: Exclude companies with shrinking top‑line revenue.
   • Rationale: In evaluating a sector’s attractiveness, it’s reasonable to emphasize:
     • Companies that are at least maintaining, if not growing, their sales
     • Avoiding firms with clearly declining demand or lost contracts
       For defense, where long‑term contracts and budgets matter, flat or positive revenue is a simple check that the business is not structurally deteriorating.

7. Analyst Consensus: Strong Buy / Moderate Buy / Hold ('analyst_consensus': ['Strong Buy', 'Moderate Buy', 'Hold'])

   • Purpose: Filter out stocks that analysts broadly dislike (“Sell” or “Underperform”), while still keeping a wide, realistic set.
   • Rationale:
     • Including Strong Buy and Moderate Buy captures names where the Street sees upside and relatively favorable risk‑reward.
     • Including Hold keeps neutral views, which is useful at the sector‑evaluation level; not all solid defense stocks will be rated a Buy at any given moment.
       This helps align the screen with the question “advisable to invest?” by emphasizing names that professionals at least don’t see as clear negatives.

8. Target Price Above Current Price ('target_price_upside_potential': ['MoreAbovePrice', 'AbovePrice'])

   • Purpose: Include stocks where analysts’ average target prices are above the current market price.
   • Rationale:
     • A target price above the current level implies analysts see some degree of upside.
     • This doesn’t mean the stock is guaranteed to rise, but it suggests the sector isn’t broadly seen as overvalued or fully priced in.
       This is relevant when judging whether it’s reasonable to allocate capital to the defense space now.

Why Results Match the User’s Question

• The industry and theme filters laser‑focus on core and adjacent defense areas (aerospace, national defense, cybersecurity, government contractors), directly matching “defense stocks.”
• The market cap and listing filters anchor the search in more investable, liquid, and established U.S. names, which is appropriate when assessing whether it is sensible for most investors to enter the sector.
• The technical (PriceAboveMA200) and fundamental (non‑negative revenue growth) filters ensure you’re looking at companies that are not obviously in downtrends or structural decline, which matters for the “is it advisable now?” question.
• The analyst consensus and target price upside filters integrate professional expectations into the picture, focusing on stocks that analysts do not view as overvalued or outright unattractive, giving an additional checkpoint on sector timing and valuation.

Overall, these filters don’t guarantee future performance, but they construct a focused list of defense‑related stocks that are currently reasonably healthy, liquid, and at least neutrally to positively viewed by the market—exactly the kind of universe you’d inspect to decide whether investing in defense stocks is advisable at this moment.