Defense contractors are having a strong Monday, and the catalyst is about as geopolitically dramatic as it gets. The United States seized former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife over the weekend, and investors are now pricing in what this kind of bold military operation might mean for defense spending and activity.

Who's Moving Higher?

The rally is broad-based across major defense names. Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT), Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC), Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), RTX Corporation (RTX), General Dynamics Corporation (GD), and L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (LHX) are all drawing attention Monday morning.

Interestingly, nearly all of them are climbing except for RTX Corporation, which is bucking the trend.

The Weekend Operation That Changed Everything

Here's what went down: The U.S. executed a weekend operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. They're now in New York City awaiting trial on a laundry list of serious charges including narco-terrorism, drug trafficking, conspiracy, money laundering, and corruption. According to U.S. authorities, Maduro allegedly ran a network that facilitated cocaine trade with terrorist organizations in exchange for weapons.

The situation on the ground in Venezuela is messy, to put it mildly. President Donald Trump announced that the United States would be running the country, but Venezuela has already moved to swear in former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who was part of Maduro's inner circle. Venezuela has also called on the United Nations to convene an emergency session in response to what it's characterizing as an attack.

The stakes are high because Venezuela sits on oil reserves that are extremely coveted by other nations. Trump has indicated that the U.S. will be tapping into the country's oil reserves, the majority of which currently flows to China. That adds another layer of complexity to an already complicated geopolitical situation.

What the Charts Say

LMT Price Action: Shares were up 2.47% at $508.94 at the time of publication, according to market data.

NOC Price Action: Shares were up 2.34% at $599.35 at the time of publication, according to market data.

PLTR Price Action: Shares were up 4.48% at $175.36 at the time of publication, according to market data.

RTX Price Action: Shares were down 0.26% at $186.76 at the time of publication, according to market data.

GD Price Action: Shares were up 2.71% at $352.79 at the time of publication, according to market data.

LHX Price Action: Shares were up 1.86% at $310.14 at the time of publication, according to market data.