Shares of Rheinmetall $RHM.DE fell more than 14% after reports of a possible postponement of the purchase of six anti-submarine F126 ships, while shares of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, by contrast, strengthened by about 9.5%. Germany had ordered 8 Meko-200 frigates from TKMS.

Situations like this show how sensitive defense companies can be to individual contracts. On the one hand, they’ve benefited from a strong long-term trend of rising military budgets; on the other hand, they can react sharply in the short term to any major order or change in government plans.

I’d be interested to hear how you view this situation.

Do you see the current drop in Rheinmetall as an interesting buying opportunity, or do you think the stock was already priced too high before this news? And do you follow any European defence companies at all, such as Rheinmetall, TKMS, Leonardo, or Saab?