SpaceX Is Losing Money and Borrowing Billions. These 4 Profitable Aerospace Stocks Might Be Better Buys Right Now

Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ: SPCX) raised $86 billion in its IPO and, days later, turned around to borrow another $25 billion in bonds to refinance a bridge loan it took out after absorbing X and xAI and their combined $17.5 billion in existing debt. The company posted a net loss of $4.28 billion in Q1 2026 alone. Its xAI division, the primary justification for the new debt, generated $818 million in revenue against $2.47 billion in operating losses in the same quarter. Some analysts project SpaceX will carry $400 billion in net debt by 2031.

That is one version of the aerospace investment thesis. Here is a different one: Invest in these four companies. It doesn't require betting on a company that raised $86 billion, borrowed $25 billion more, and is still losing money.

Image source: Getty Images.

RTX (NYSE: RTX) runs two of the most strategically positioned businesses in global aerospace: Pratt & Whitney, which makes the engines that power the aircraft fleets of several major airlines and air forces in the world, and Raytheon, which supplies missiles, radar systems, and electronic warfare capabilities at a moment when global defense budgets are expanding faster than they have in a generation.

In Q1 2026, RTX posted $22.1 billion in sales -- up 9% year over year -- with Raytheon's operating profit up 24% versus the prior year. For full-year 2026, the company guided to $92 billion to $93 billion in adjusted sales. Its backlog, a measure of contracted future revenue, sits at a level that provides years of visibility. RTX is a business that generates cash in peace and grows in conflict. That combination is not common, and it doesn't require a 30-year bet on an AI product with no revenue path.

2. Heico

Heico (NYSE: HEI) is the aerospace version of a toll road. The company makes FAA-approved replacement parts for commercial aircraft at prices lower than the original equipment manufacturers, creating defensible alternative supply chain that airlines depend on to manage maintenance costs.

In Q2 fiscal 2026, Heico posted record net income up 49% year over year, on record net sales of $1.375 billion -- up 25%. The company has successfully integrated four acquisitions in fiscal 2026 alone while maintaining its margin structure. The Electronic Technologies Group -- which serves defense, space, and aerospace markets -- posted 56% operating income growth and 34% sales growth in the same quarter.

Heico has compounded earnings per share for more than three decades through every aerospace cycle because its business model sits in the maintenance layer, not the capital expenditure layer. Airlines don't stop maintaining planes.

3. Curtiss-Wright

Curtiss-Wright (NYSE: CW) is a company that doesn't generate headlines, which is part of why it's worth knowing. The company makes highly specialized motion control systems, embedded computing, and defense electronics used in naval submarines, combat vehicles, and nuclear power plants.

In Q1 2026, Curtiss-Wright reported $914 million in sales -- up 13% -- with operating income up 23% and operating margin expanding to 17.5%. EPS came in at $3.46. Its 2026 guidance calls for higher sales and higher operating margins. The defense nuclear business is the part of Curtiss-Wright that most investors underweight: Every nuclear aircraft carrier and submarine in the U.S. fleet relies on components supplied by Curtiss-Wright.

With the U.S. Navy's shipbuilding budget expanding and nuclear propulsion remaining the only viable power source for strategic submarine platforms, this revenue stream is effectively contractually locked in for decades.

4. Hexcel

Hexcel makes the carbon fiber composites that go inside commercial aircraft wings, fuselage panels, and engine nacelles -- the structural materials that make modern wide-body aircraft light enough to be fuel-efficient at scale.

In Q1 2026, Hexcel reported net sales of $501.5 million, up 9.9% year over year, with adjusted EPS of $0.59 -- beating analyst estimates by 14%. The widebody production ramp up at Airbus and Boeing is the tailwind that makes this business worth understanding. Both manufacturers are accelerating production of the A350 and 787, aircraft whose airframes depend on carbon fiber composites at a level that aluminum-era planes never did. With a market cap of $7.4 billion, Hexcel trades at a fraction of the valuation commanded by aerospace companies with less direct exposure to the same build-rate ramp.

Micah Zimmerman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Boeing, Curtiss-Wright, Heico, and RTX. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.