Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin sends a satellite company’s stock soaring

Boca Raton, Florida-based Terran Orbital, which went public earlier this year, soared in early Monday trading after Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed Martin said it would invest $100 million in the company.

Terran Orbital makes small satellites and has NASA contracts. It said it will use the investment to expand manufacturing. The Strategic Cooperation Agreement with Lockheed runs through 2035. It’s the second investment Lockheed has made in the company.



Terran Global stock rose as much as 52% in Monday pre-market trading.

(Courtesy Lockheed Martin)

As part of the investment, Terran Orbital will expand manufacturing in Irvine, California, where the company has already added more than 140,000 square feet of production space in the past 12 months.

Terran Orbital cited the conflict in Ukraine for highlighting the need for advanced satellite imagery.

“We see the opportunity to dramatically ramp up our capabilities and external product offerings, which we believe will move Terran Orbital toward profitability,” said CEO Mark Bell.

Terran Orbital developed the Capstone Satellite, which NASA recently launched around the moon.

It builds small satellites for both commercial and government customers. It had $41 million in revenue in 2021, according to Bloomberg data, and expects that to more than double in 2022.

Jeff Clabaugh

Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region's economy and financial markets for WTOP as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the WTOP newsroom staff in January 2016.

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