Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index added 2 percent to another record close Thursday as investors continued a buying spree on defense stocks after Donald Trump’s election win and Maximus (NYSE: MMS) rebounded after its sharp drop Wednesday.
GovCon Index gainers again outnumbered laggers at a 9-to-1 ratio for a second consecutive session and all of its 11 S&P 500 stocks closed green with pharmaceutical services provider McKesson Corp. (NYSE: MCK) the best performer of co-listed stocks.
Military shipbuilders General Dynamics and Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE: HII) ended second and third respectively for net gainers as investors continued to key on Trump’s pledge to increase the Navy’s fleet size as we noted yesterday, when HII led all advancers.
Reston, Virginia-based Maximus ended fourth for net advancers after the government health and human services contractor said pre-open it expects contracted work under the Affordable Care Act to continue and issued a revenue forecast for ACA-related services.
Maximus’ fiscal year 2017 earnings and revenue guidance came in below analyst expectations as the company expects headwinds from the British pound’s continued weakening in the wake of the Brexit referendum.
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) rounded out the top five for GovCon Index net gainers in another example of investors’ pivots toward large-cap defense primes.
CSRA (NYSE: CSRA) led percentage advancers and ended seventh on net after the public sector technology services provider reported second quarter financial results above Wall Street’s forecasts on the top and bottom lines.
Notable health and civilian agency contractors CGI Group (NYSE: GIB), ICF (Nasdaq: ICFI) and Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE: BAH) closed down.
U.S. stocks performed more modestly Thursday compared to Wednesday’s spike as investors shifted to a posture of uncertainty after the election as financial shares led six S&P 500 sectors higher for a second consecutive session, while consumer dragged five other segments lower with technology also down.
Market Summary
| Index | Value | Net Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| GovCon Index | 85.741 | +1.694 | +2.016% |
| S&P 500 | 2, 167.48 | +4.22 | +0.20% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 18, 807.88 | +218.25 | +1.17% |
| NASDAQ | 5, 208.80 | -42.28 | -0.81% |
| Advancing GovCon Index Issues | 28 |
| Declining GovCon Index Issues | 1 |
| Unchanged GovCon Index Issues | 1 |
Top GovCon Index Net Gainers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change –´ | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCK | McKesson Corp. * | 147.49 | +5.81 | +4.10% |
| HII | Huntington Ingalls Industries | 172.90 | +5.31 | +3.17% |
| GD | General Dynamics * | 166.51 | +4.42 | +2.73% |
| MMS | Maximus | 49.12 | +3.91 | +8.66% |
| LMT | Lockheed Martin * | 257.27 | +3.81 | +1.50% |
Top GovCon Index Percentage Gainers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change | % Change –´ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSRA | CSRA * | 29.95 | +2.56 | +9.35% |
| MMS | Maximus | 49.12 | +3.91 | +8.66% |
| KBR | KBR | 15.62 | +0.90 | +6.11% |
| BAESY | BAE Systems | 30.74 | +1.66 | +5.69% |
| EGL | Engility Holdings | 33.27 | +1.48 | +4.66% |
Lowest GovCon Index Net Performers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change –¾ | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GIB | CGI Group | 48.62 | -1.52 | -3.03% |
| ICFI | ICF | 49.70 | -0.20 | -0.40% |
| BAH | Booz Allen Hamilton | 33.45 | -0.10 | -0.30% |
Lowest GovCon Index Percentage Performers
| Symbol | Company | $ Current Price | Net Change | % Change –¾ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GIB | CGI Group | 48.62 | -1.52 | -3.03% |
| ICFI | ICF | 49.70 | -0.20 | -0.40% |
| BAH | Booz Allen Hamilton | 33.45 | -0.10 | -0.30% |
