Billionaire Rinehart builds $97M stake in U.S. defense contractors

[Celebrities Attend Melbourne Cup Day]
Scott Barbour

Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart invested nearly $97M in U.S. defense contractors during the first quarter while also adding stakes in two mining companies.

Her privately held Hancock Prospecting disclosed new positions in RTX (RTX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/RTX]), valued at about $24.69M; Northrop Grumman (NOC [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/NOC]), valued at about $24.2M; L3Harris Technologies (LHX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/LHX]), valued at roughly $24.16M; and Lockheed Martin (LMT [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/LMT]), valued at about $23.6M as of March 31.

The company also expanded its mining exposure, adding 1.35M shares to its stake in Hudbay Minerals (HBM [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HBM]), bringing the position to roughly 15.9M shares worth about $333.2M, while initiating a new stake in Newmont (NEM [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/NEM]) valued at about $20.6M.

Hancock also maintained large positions in MP Materials (MP [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/MP]), valued at about $717.2M, and Teck Resources (TECK [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/TECK]), valued at about $532.9M.

Gina Rinehart, whose fortune is estimated at $43.8B, built her wealth by developing major iron ore operations in Western Australia. Last week, her Hancock Prospecting disclosed a new investment in Rare Earths Americas, acquiring about 1.2M shares for a 6% stake in the newly listed U.S. miner. The position was valued at roughly $34M, according to a filing.

Apart from its defense and mining bets, Hancock disclosed [https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2017993/000121390026057684/xslForm13F_X02/infotable.xml]a new position in CrowdStrike (CRWD [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/CRWD]), with the stake valued at about $16.1M at the end of the first quarter.

MORE ON LOCKHEED MARTIN, L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES, ETC.

* Lockheed Martin: The Defense Supercycle Is Here, But Not All Growth Will Flow To The Bottom Line [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4905812-lockheed-martin-defense-supercycle-is-here-not-all-growth-will-flow-to-bottom-line]
* CrowdStrike: Overbought Entering FQ1'27 - Structural Tailwinds Meet Premium Valuations [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4903254-crowdstrike-overbought-entering-fq127-structural-tailwinds-meet-premium-valuations]
* L3Harris Technologies: Strong Execution And Expanding Backlog Support Buy Rating [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4902425-l3harris-technologies-stock-strong-execution-and-expanding-backlog-support-buy-rating]
* Lockheed Martin Aeronautics wins $879M order for F-35 armament production [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4594669-lockheed-martin-aeronautics-wins-879m-order-for-f-35-armament-production]
* Northrop wins spot in Pentagon drone program as U.S. pushes mass production [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4594630-northrop-wins-spot-in-pentagon-drone-program-as-u-s-pushes-mass-production]