According to CoinMeta, Lockheed Martin ( LMT ) and Northrop Grumman ( NOC ) have significantly increased their investments in the field of missile defense. On August 3, the U.S. Department of Defense signed an agreement with Lockheed Martin worth over $3 billion to enhance the production of Patriot and THAAD interceptor missiles. With the intensification of the Iran conflict and the ongoing Ukraine war, inventory levels are under pressure. According to estimates by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the U.S. military currently has fewer than 1,000 Patriot interceptors and fewer than 250 THAAD interceptors. The agreement includes a $2 billion framework deal to accelerate the production of PAC-3 MSE, as well as provide key components, and a $1 billion deal to expand the monthly supply of THAAD components over seven years. This agreement will make Northrop Grumman the second supplier of PAC-3 MSE solid rocket engines. According to a press release from the Department of Defense, the framework is aimed at tripling the production of Patriots and quadrupling the output of THAAD.