An F-35 fighter jet performs at the annual Wings Over Houston Air Show at Ellington Airport, Texas, on October 19, 2019. The annual air show opened Saturday at Ellington Airport with aerial performances and exhibits. Photo: Xinhua News Agency
Shares of Lockheed Martin, the U.S. weapons company that makes the F-35 fifth-generation fighter jet, were downgraded from buy to hold at Deutsche Bank, and the price target was lowered from $611 to $523. Analysts at the bank cited “China’s efforts to modernize fighter jets” as the reason behind the decision, after a video suspected of showing what was believed to be a sixth-generation Chinese fighter jet was leaked online. I mentioned it.
Deutsche Bank has lost confidence in its initial rating upgrade discussion in July and is struggling to find new reasons to maintain a positive stance on the stock, US news outlet Business Insider reported on Thursday. Ta.
“We are downgrading Lockheed to hold (from buy) because we feel our previous position holds, and we believe the F-35 will continue to grow in the face of China’s fighter modernization efforts. “This is due to growing concerns about long-term support,” US news magazine Barron’s quoted Scott Deuschl, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, as saying.
Deuschle said he sees “revelation of further advances in fighter capabilities by China that could undermine (the Department of Defense’s) long-term demand for the F-35 aircraft.”
Barron’s report noted that China recently released a video of its sixth-generation jet fighter. The F-35, which accounts for approximately 25% of Lockheed’s total sales, is a fifth-generation jet fighter.
On December 26, a number of videos and photos were posted on Chinese social media showing test flights of a new aircraft shaped like a ginkgo leaf. Shortly after the appearance of the large “Ginkgo Leaf” aircraft, another video went viral on December 26th, showing that another new type of aircraft, believed to be smaller than the “Ginkgo Leaf” aircraft, was undergoing flight tests. It was shown that it was happening.
The two new jets “appear to be Beijing’s first advanced sixth-generation stealth fighters,” the Washington Times quoted defense analysts as saying.
At the time of writing, neither the Chinese military nor the Chinese defense industry has reviewed the videos or photos, nor have they made any official announcements about the aircraft. However, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater District released a music video on Wednesday to celebrate the new year. The music video depicts ginkgo leaves and birds, leading netizens to associate it with the alleged debut of China’s sixth-generation fighter jet. .
The United States has a sixth-generation jet fighter program called Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD), and Lockheed is likely bidding to deliver those aircraft, but it’s unclear how that process will play out. said Barron’s.
The U.S. Air Force has decided to leave the incoming Trump administration to make its own decisions about the future path of NGAD jets. The U.S. Air Force has paused efforts to develop and manufacture a sixth-generation fighter jet in the summer of 2024 due to concerns about potential costs, U.S. media outlet Defense News reported on December 6.
Wang Yanan, editor-in-chief of Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times on Friday that there are several videos of test flights of what is said to be China’s next-generation aircraft, but no official confirmation has been made. He said he has not done so.
However, even though this information is unconfirmed, Lockheed Martin’s long-term prospects remain in doubt, leading to a downgrade of the company’s stock.
Although the video has not been confirmed, it demonstrated to the outside world that China is making rapid progress in scientific research and exploration of next-generation military aircraft. By comparison, Wang pointed out that there are no publicly known videos of tests of American sixth-generation fighter jets.
Chinese military expert Song Zhongping told the Global Times on Friday that Lockheed Martin was wasting too many resources on the F-35. Meanwhile, China may be developing not only the same generation J-20 and J-35, but also the next generation of aircraft if the video is true.
