Which Public Companies Get the Most Federal Contracts?
Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026 (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), the most of any company. Here are the largest federal contractors, which of them are listed stocks, how much Lockheed Martin and Palantir get, and how the totals have moved, from USAspending.gov.
Key takeaways
- Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026 (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), the most of any parent company, according to USAspending.gov data as of Oct 20, 2026.
- The 5 largest contractors took 31% of the $522.8 billion the federal government obligated to its 400 largest contractors in fiscal 2026.
- 16 of the 37 largest contractors in fiscal 2026 are matched to US-listed stocks, and they received 71% of the group’s contract money; the rest include Triwest Healthcare Alliance and Fisher Sand & Gravel.
- Palantir received $2.0 billion in fiscal 2026, +267% from $541 million in fiscal 2024, per USAspending.gov.
- Grouped by company name, the 37 largest contractors in fiscal 2026 split as defense and aerospace 49%, health care 19%, IT and consulting 10% of the group’s contract money (USAspending.gov, Oct 20, 2026).
- Which companies get the most government contracts?
- How much do Lockheed Martin and Palantir get from the government?
- Is federal contract spending going up?
- Defense, health care or IT: where does the contract money go?
- Which listed contractors grew the most?
- What federal contracts mean for investors
- Method and caveats
Which companies get the most government contracts?
Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026 (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), the most of any parent company. Next came RTX ($32.9 billion) and General Dynamics ($27.6 billion). The top 5 took 31% of the $522.8 billion obligated to the 400 largest contractors that year.
An obligation is the government’s commitment to pay under a contract, recorded when the money is committed, not when it is paid, and it can be revised down or cancelled later. A parent’s total includes its subsidiaries, such as a shipyard owned by a defense group. For an investor, the list shows dependence: a listed contractor whose sales come mostly from federal agencies moves with budgets and contract wins as well as with the economy.
| # | Parent company | Stock | Obligations, FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lockheed Martin | LMT | $49.7 billion |
| 2 | RTX | RTX | $32.9 billion |
| 3 | General Dynamics | GD | $27.6 billion |
| 4 | Boeing | BA | $27.4 billion |
| 5 | UnitedHealth Group | UNH | $24.9 billion |
| 6 | Triwest Healthcare Alliance | Private / other | $16.6 billion |
| 7 | McKesson | MCK | $13.5 billion |
| 8 | Fisher Sand & Gravel | Private / other | $13.4 billion |
| 9 | Northrop Grumman | NOC | $11.1 billion |
| 10 | Leidos Holdings | LDOS | $9.6 billion |
| 11 | Honeywell International | HON | $9.0 billion |
| 12 | Huntington Ingalls Industries | HII | $8.9 billion |
| 13 | Fluor | FLR | $8.0 billion |
| 14 | Booz Allen Hamilton Holding | BAH | $6.5 billion |
| 15 | Cencora | COR | $6.5 billion |
| 16 | Barnard Construction | Private / other | $6.1 billion |
| 17 | Humana | HUM | $5.6 billion |
| 18 | Triad National Security | Private / other | $5.5 billion |
| 19 | ADS Tactical | Private / other | $5.0 billion |
| 20 | AECOM | Private / other | $4.6 billion |
| 21 | BAE Systems | Private / other | $4.5 billion |
| 22 | Science Applications International | Private / other | $4.0 billion |
| 23 | Deloitte | Private / other | $3.8 billion |
| 24 | Lawrence Livermore National Security | Private / other | $3.7 billion |
| 25 | Bechtel Group | Private / other | $3.6 billion |
Federal fiscal 2026 (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), USAspending.gov data as of Oct 20, 2026. “Private / other” means no match to a stock in our coverage: private companies, nonprofit lab operators, parents listed abroad and some smaller listed companies. Of the 37 largest, 16 are matched to US‑listed stocks and received 71% of the group’s total.
How much do Lockheed Martin and Palantir get from the government?
Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026, the most of any company. Palantir received $2.0 billion in fiscal 2026, +267% from $541 million in fiscal 2024.
The two are very different businesses. Lockheed Martin builds aircraft, missiles and space systems, and most of its sales are to the US government, according to its annual report. Palantir sells data and AI software to government agencies and to companies, so federal contracts are one part of a business that also has commercial and foreign customers.
| Fiscal year | Lockheed Martin | Palantir Technologies | Top 400 total |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $70.6 billion | — | $405.8 billion |
| FY2021 | $35.4 billion | — | $388.8 billion |
| FY2022 | $42.0 billion | — | $423.4 billion |
| FY2023 | $63.1 billion | — | $465.6 billion |
| FY2024 | $44.9 billion | $541 million | $461.1 billion |
| FY2025 | $69.3 billion | $1.0 billion | $512.9 billion |
| FY2026 | $49.7 billion | $2.0 billion | $522.8 billion |
A dash: the company was not among the 400 largest contractors that year, or its awards were not matched to it.
Is federal contract spending going up?
Obligations to the 400 largest contractors totalled $522.8 billion in fiscal 2026, +29% from $405.8 billion in fiscal 2020.
Two things to keep in mind. The figures are in dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. And Defense Department awards appear on USAspending.gov with a delay of about 90 days, so the latest fiscal year can still rise as late reports arrive.
Defense, health care or IT: where does the contract money go?
Defense and aerospace, by company name: 49% of the $349.3 billion that went to the 37 largest contractors in fiscal 2026. Defense and aerospace: Lockheed Martin, RTX and General Dynamics. Health care: UnitedHealth Group, Triwest Healthcare Alliance and McKesson. IT and consulting: Leidos Holdings, Booz Allen Hamilton Holding and Science Applications International. National labs and nuclear sites: Triad National Security, Lawrence Livermore National Security and Consolidated Nuclear Security.
The groups are our own, assigned from company names only. Many contractors work in several areas: a defense group can own an IT services unit, and a consulting firm can work for the military. Read them as a rough split, not an official classification.
Which listed contractors grew the most?
Among listed companies with at least $1 billion in fiscal 2026, UnitedHealth Group grew the most: from $2.3 billion in fiscal 2020 to $24.9 billion (+995%). Contract money can jump when a large multi‑year award is obligated in one year, so a single year is a noisy guide to a trend.
| Company | FY2020 | FY2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| UnitedHealth Group | $2.3 billion | $24.9 billion | +995% |
| Cencora | $2.2 billion | $6.5 billion | +196% |
| Oracle | $1.0 billion | $2.1 billion | +100% |
| AT&T | $582 million | $1.0 billion | +78% |
| CACI International | $2.1 billion | $3.6 billion | +70% |
| Dell Technologies | $2.0 billion | $3.3 billion | +65% |
| Leidos Holdings | $7.1 billion | $9.6 billion | +35% |
| Honeywell International | $6.7 billion | $9.0 billion | +34% |
| McKesson | $10.1 billion | $13.5 billion | +34% |
| Fluor | $6.2 billion | $8.0 billion | +28% |
What federal contracts mean for investors
- One big customer: a company that sells mostly to the federal government depends on annual appropriations and on winning re‑competitions when contracts end.
- Obligations are not revenue: money committed in one fiscal year can be earned and booked over several years.
- Budget timing: when a budget is late, agencies run on continuing resolutions, which can hold back new awards.
- The filings say how much: listed contractors report the share of sales to the US government in their annual report (10‑K).
- Concentration: several large contractors are big holdings in defense and aerospace funds, so owning those funds adds to the same exposure.
Method and caveats
- Source: USAspending.gov (federal award data), contract award types A–D (blanket purchase agreement calls, purchase orders, delivery orders and definitive contracts), as of Oct 20, 2026.
- Federal fiscal years run Oct 1 to Sep 30; this page covers fiscal 2020 to 2026. Amounts are obligations in dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation; they can be negative when awards are cut.
- Each year’s 400 largest recipients are rolled up to their parent company using USAspending.gov’s recipient records, and parents are matched to the stocks we cover by name. A company outside that group in a year is not counted for that year (a dash in the tables).
- “Private / other” means no match to a stock in our coverage: private companies, nonprofit lab operators, universities, parents listed abroad and some smaller listed companies.
- Industry groups are our own, assigned from company names only.
- Defense Department awards are published with a delay of about 90 days, so the latest fiscal year can still rise.
- Past performance does not guarantee future results. Historical figures are calculated by Exent from market data and are for education only; they are not investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.
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Frequently asked questions
Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026 (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), the most of any parent company, followed by RTX ($32.9 billion) and General Dynamics ($27.6 billion). Source: USAspending.gov, as of Oct 20, 2026.
Lockheed Martin received $49.7 billion in federal contract obligations in fiscal 2026, the most of any company (Oct 1, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026), according to USAspending.gov as of Oct 20, 2026. The figure is contract obligations, the government’s commitments to pay, rolled up across Lockheed Martin’s units.
Palantir received $2.0 billion in fiscal 2026, +267% from $541 million in fiscal 2024, according to USAspending.gov as of Oct 20, 2026. These are federal contract obligations; Palantir also sells to foreign governments and commercial customers.
Obligations to the 400 largest contractors were $522.8 billion in fiscal 2026, +29% from $405.8 billion in fiscal 2020, in dollars not adjusted for inflation. Defense Department awards appear with a delay of about 90 days, so the latest year can still rise.
They bring large, long-running revenue from a customer that pays, but they also tie the company to annual budgets, contract re-competitions and changes in spending priorities. How a contractor’s stock does depends on margins, growth and price as much as on the size of its awards.
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Stocks Radar tracks Congress trades, insider buying and big‑fund moves as they are filed, and Gems show where the best‑rated analysts agree.
Educational content, not investment advice. Examples are illustrative; past performance does not guarantee future results.