Patriot: The Allies Buy What the Army UsesWide moat

RTX (RTX) — moat facet

Patriot is sold as a system, and every country that owns one keeps buying interceptors, which is why Raytheon booked more than $5 billion of GEM-T in one quarter.

Raytheon's strongest franchise is integrated air and missile defence: Patriot, the LTAMDS radar and NASAMS1. It sells a system, and a system in service keeps consuming interceptors. In the second quarter of 2026 Raytheon booked more than $5 billion of GEM-T Patriot effectors, including "our first domestic GEM-T production order in over 30 years"2.

Patriot GEM-T awards, Q2 2026 ($M)3,700Ukraine988Poland via NSPARTX Form 10-Q Q2 2026; total GEM-T bookings over 5bn per the call
Allied orders drove the quarter.

The allies are the growth. Awards in the quarter included $3.7 billion for GEM-T missiles for Ukraine and $988 million for Poland through the NATO support agency3. In the first half Raytheon booked more than $10 billion of international awards, more than double the prior year4.

The reason allies buy Patriot is the reason they keep buying: it is the system their neighbours and the U.S. Army already operate, trained on and supplied through shared channels. A country that has bought the radar and launchers will buy the interceptors, the upgrades and the sustainment.

The land and air defence business led Raytheon's 2025 growth, adding $1.6 billion of organic sales on Patriot, NASAMS and LTAMDS5.

The international demand is concentrated in Europe. More than $7 billion of Raytheon's first-half 2026 international awards came from European customers6, and the Polish GEM-T order was placed through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency7. Buying through a shared agency is another way allies standardise on the same system.

The franchise was growing before the latest surge. In 2024 Raytheon's organic growth of $1.7 billion was led by $1.4 billion from land and air defence programmes, on international Patriot, international NASAMS and counter-drone programmes8. The 2026 bookings extend a trend rather than start one.

An installed system is the defence version of an engine fleet. The number to watch is Raytheon's bookings; its book-to-bill was 1.77 over the twelve months to June 20269, and a fall below 1.0 would mean the replenishment cycle has turned.

Moat trajectory: Widening

Over $10bn of international awards in H1 2026, more than double.

The number that tests this moat
Reported
Raytheon book-to-bill, rolling twelve months
1.77 (to Q2 2026)

Replenishment demand; below 1.0 would mean the cycle has turned.

Source: RTX Q2 2026 earnings call transcript ↗
⚠ Threats to the moat
⚠ THREAT 01
An Order Book Written by Wars
A large part of Raytheon's order surge replaces missiles fired in wars, demand that shrinks when the fighting stops.
References
  1. ReportedRaytheon's strongest franchise is integrated air and missile defence: Patriot, the LTAMDS radar and NASAMS.
    RTX Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1 business: the three segments and their products, the GTF family powering more than 2,600 aircraft for over 90 operators, the F135 as sole-source engine on all F-35 variants, GTF Advantage certification, the IAE collaboration shares, employees (about 180,000 in 52 countries, 69% in the U.S.) and the divested businesses. — FY2025 · publ. 6 February 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedIn the second quarter of 2026 Raytheon booked more than $5 billion of GEM-T Patriot effectors, including "our first domestic GEM-T production order in over 30 years".
    RTX second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool) - Raytheon bookings and book-to-bill, GTF aircraft-on-ground and MRO output, munitions output, framework agreements, the defence budget request, GTF Advantage, Collins margin plans and segment outlook - defence: Raytheon bookings, book-to-bill and backlog, munitions output, framework agreements and the budget request. — Q2 2026 · publ. 24 July 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedAwards in the quarter included $3.7 billion for GEM-T missiles for Ukraine and $988 million for Poland through the NATO support agency.
    RTX Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026 - backlog of $289 billion ($170 billion commercial, $119 billion defence), remaining performance obligations, the $0.4 billion powder-metal accrual, the Blue Canyon Technologies sale, Patriot awards and the remaining repurchase authority. — Q2 2026 · publ. 23 July 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedIn the first half Raytheon booked more than $10 billion of international awards, more than double the prior year.
    RTX second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool) - Raytheon bookings and book-to-bill, GTF aircraft-on-ground and MRO output, munitions output, framework agreements, the defence budget request, GTF Advantage, Collins margin plans and segment outlook - defence: Raytheon bookings, book-to-bill and backlog, munitions output, framework agreements and the budget request. — Q2 2026 · publ. 24 July 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedThe land and air defence business led Raytheon's 2025 growth, adding $1.6 billion of organic sales on Patriot, NASAMS and LTAMDS.
    RTX Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 7 segment review and Note 20: net sales and operating profit by segment for 2023-2025, organic sales drivers (commercial aftermarket, OEM, military), sales by customer type, products and services, segment assets, capital expenditure and research and development - Raytheon: segment sales, operating profit, organic drivers, defence bookings and customer types. — FY2023-FY2025 · publ. 6 February 2026 · source ↗
  6. ReportedMore than $7 billion of Raytheon's first-half 2026 international awards came from European customers, and the Polish GEM-T order was placed through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency.
    RTX second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool) - Raytheon bookings and book-to-bill, GTF aircraft-on-ground and MRO output, munitions output, framework agreements, the defence budget request, GTF Advantage, Collins margin plans and segment outlook - defence: Raytheon bookings, book-to-bill and backlog, munitions output, framework agreements and the budget request. — Q2 2026 · publ. 24 July 2026 · source ↗
  7. ReportedMore than $7 billion of Raytheon's first-half 2026 international awards came from European customers, and the Polish GEM-T order was placed through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency.
    RTX Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026 - backlog of $289 billion ($170 billion commercial, $119 billion defence), remaining performance obligations, the $0.4 billion powder-metal accrual, the Blue Canyon Technologies sale, Patriot awards and the remaining repurchase authority. — Q2 2026 · publ. 23 July 2026 · source ↗
  8. ReportedIn 2024 Raytheon's organic growth of $1.7 billion was led by $1.4 billion from land and air defence programmes, on international Patriot, international NASAMS and counter-drone programmes.
    RTX Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 7 segment review and Note 20: net sales and operating profit by segment for 2023-2025, organic sales drivers (commercial aftermarket, OEM, military), sales by customer type, products and services, segment assets, capital expenditure and research and development - Raytheon: segment sales, operating profit, organic drivers, defence bookings and customer types. — FY2023-FY2025 · publ. 6 February 2026 · source ↗
  9. ReportedThe number to watch is Raytheon's bookings; its book-to-bill was 1.77 over the twelve months to June 2026, and a fall below 1.0 would mean the replenishment cycle has turned.
    RTX second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool) - Raytheon bookings and book-to-bill, GTF aircraft-on-ground and MRO output, munitions output, framework agreements, the defence budget request, GTF Advantage, Collins margin plans and segment outlook - defence: Raytheon bookings, book-to-bill and backlog, munitions output, framework agreements and the budget request. — Q2 2026 · publ. 24 July 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 28, 2026