In this article, we will discuss: Jim Cramer’s Hottest Defense Technology Stock Picks. For more stocks, you can head to Jim Cramer’s Hottest Defense Technology Stock Picks: Top 5 Stocks.

With the US operation in Iran in full swing, defense stocks are back in the spotlight. Data from the United States Central Command shows that as of March 23rd, forces have struck more than 9,000 targets in Iran courtesy of more than 9,000 flights. Assets employed by CENTCOM include B Series bombers, such as the B-1, B-2, and B-52, and F Series fighter jets such as the F-18, F-22, and the F-16. Owing to its impact on the market, CNBC’s Jim Cramer hasn’t held back on commenting on the conflict either. In a recent tweet, the TV host commented that there was a strange divergence where the price of crude oil said that “the war is winding down” while the “S&P futures say be cautious.”

Before the war, Paul Marino, Chief Revenue Officer at Themes ETFs, in an appearance on CNBC on January 7th commented that some of the reasons that defense stocks could perform well included the fact that “the US is far advanced from everybody else and they are going to put their foot to the metal because they want to take control of the Western hemisphere and assert themselves.” He added that “every other nation that is in control of their own defense now, in Europe, has to step up their game. And they’ve got to shorten that gap in what they could do from a military standpoint.” Consequently, he predicted that “we think there’s a long runway for defense and aerospace stocks. And we think there’s a lot more room to run over the next three, five, maybe even ten years.”

Our Methodology

To make our list of Jim Cramer’s hottest defense technology stock picks, we made a list of defense stocks that he was optimistic about in 2025. Then, their performance since the comments were made was calculated, and the stocks were ranked accordingly. Additionally, the number of hedge fund investors back then was also mentioned. Finally, the number of investors as of the fourth quarter of 2025 was also mentioned for additional context.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 498.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 303 percentage points (see more details here).

13. Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON)

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q4 2024: 67

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q4 2025: 79

Performance Since Cramer’s Remarks: 18.9%

Date/Month of Cramer’s Remarks: April 4th, 2025

Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) is a major defense contractor through its aerospace business, which is due to be spun off later this year. The shares are up by 11% over the past year and by 18.9% since Cramer discussed the firm on Mad Money. Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON)’s shares closed 5% higher on April 29th after the firm reported its first quarter earnings report. The results saw the firm raise its profit forecast by $500 million at a time when investors were wondering about the impact of tariffs. Overall, Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) posted $9.82 billion in revenue and $2.51 in profit per share to beat analyst estimates of $9.59 billion and $2.21. However, more recently, the shares struggled in the aftermath of the US operation in Iran. The shares dipped by 1.3% on March 17th after Honeywell International Inc. (NASDAQ:HON) warned that it would face shipping disruptions in the Middle East. Cramer was confident in April 2025 that the firm was undervalued:

“Jeff and I talked about this endlessly, up 16 today by the way. We think the stock is dramatically undervalued. We think that Vimal Kapur is doing everything right. We could not believe how low the stock got. I am a firm believer and a buyer of Honeywell even at these levels. Yes. I like it that much. It was down 8% last week. That’s nutty.”

12. AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q3 2024: 22

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q4 2025: 40

Performance Since Cramer’s Remarks: 25%

Date/Month of Cramer’s Remarks: January 10th, 2025

AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a robotic systems company that operates in the defense industry through its drone business. Its shares are up by 55% over the past year and by 25% since Cramer discussed the firm on Mad Money. Its shares closed a whopping 21% higher on June 25th after the firm reported its fourth quarter earnings report. The results saw AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) post $275 million in revenue and $1.61 in profit per share to beat analyst estimates of $241 million and $1.39. The shares jumped by another 9% in October start, after the firm held its analyst day. More recently, AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s stock closed 4.3% higher earlier this month after Raymond James upgraded the firm to Market Perform from Underperform and pointed towards improved backlogs and a gap between expectations for the firm and its performance. Here’s what Cramer had said about AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) in January 2025:

“Oh boy, I really like it. It really is the solution, I think, in a lot of ways to a Pentagon budget that may be too bloated but needs to be more effective. I like AVAV and I gotta tell you, Wahid Nawabi, he’s been on the show and every time he’s been a star.”