Jan 24, 2023
(Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images) The two largest U.S. defense contractors saw a boost in sales as the Pentagon accelerated weapons orders to fill the gap left by billions in weapons and equipment sent to Ukraine, the companies said Tuesday. Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies posted fourth quarter 2022 earnings Tuesday that came in still slightly below earnings from the same period in 2021, attributing the downturn to labor shortages and supply chain issues that suppressed earnings throughout 2022, statements show. However, the two largest beneficiaries of $6.6 billion in Department of Defense (DOD) contracts awarded to industry as part of the Ukraine war response are picking up the pace compared to the previous quarter, according to The Wall Street Journal. "We've got the orders, we've got the capacity," Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes said on an investor call Tuesday to break down the company's quarterly earnings report. "We just need to bring th