By Alberto Delclaux 
 

Shares in Leonardo SpA (LDO.MI) rose Tuesday after the company won a contract from the U.S. Air Force along with Boeing Co. (BA) to provide helicopters for the protection of nuclear missile bases.

The Pentagon awarded the companies an initial $376-million deal for MH-139 aircraft to replace aging UH-1N Huey choppers, but the full contract could be worth up to $2.4 billion for a total of 84 helicopters, training devices and support equipment. Boeing's MH-139 is the militarized version of Leonardo's AW139 civil helicopter.

At 0838 GMT, shares at the Italian defense-and-aerospace company were up 3.16% at EUR10.79.

Banca IMI analyst Monica Bosio said that for Leonardo the value of the contract could amount to $1 billion, or about 6% of the bank's estimated order intake for the company this year.

"We view the award as highly positive from a strategic standpoint, as it allows Leonardo to enter for the first time into the U.S. military helicopter market," Ms. Bosio said.

Leonardo shares were last up 3% at EUR10.79.

 

Write to Alberto Delclaux at alberto.delclaux@dowjones.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 25, 2018 05:12 ET (09:12 GMT)

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