3 European Satellite Stocks As Starlink Risks Put Airbus And Leonardo In Focus

Starlink’s reported throttling in Ukraine has turned secure satellite access into a live stress test rather than an abstract policy debate, and investors suddenly care who controls the backup plan. Dependency risk is on full display, and capital often chases credible alternatives once that vulnerability is exposed. This article picks out 3 European stocks exposed to this story, explains how the news touches their prospects, and helps you decide whether they deserve a closer look.

The stocks covered below are a small sample, and the full screen surfaced 57 more European sovereign backed satellite and secure communications infrastructure companies with similarly strong storylines that are not covered in this article. If you want to identify and analyze potential high conviction ideas backed by public programs, head straight to the European sovereign-backed satellite and secure communications infrastructure screener.

Leonardo (BIT:LDO)

Leonardo is one of Europe’s key defence and secure satellite players, tying Italy’s national-champion ambitions to a broad mix of helicopters, defence electronics, cyber security and space systems that matter directly for the screener’s focus on sovereign backed communications resilience.

Leonardo runs a diversified defence and aerospace portfolio, with Defence Electronics & Security at about €9.1b of revenue, Helicopters at roughly €5.9b, Aeronautics close to €4.3b, Space near €1.1b and Cyber & Security Solutions at around €0.9b, supporting a market value of roughly €29.1b.

Investors looking at secure European alternatives to Starlink are watching how this national champion positions itself for long term defence and space spending.

"Rising global defence and security spending, which Leonardo’s plan frames as growing at around 4% to 5% a year in key regions, supports the company’s upgraded 2026 guidance for €28.2b of orders and €2.21b of EBITA."

One unresolved pressure on higher margin electronics and space programs could affect the balance between that guidance and actual delivery.

That pressure point is exactly what you need to unpack through the full narrative for Leonardo, which explains how Leonardo’s order ambitions could be masking very different paths for risk and potential upside.

Airbus (ENXTPA:AIR)

Airbus is the flagship European aerospace group in this screener, linking government backed satellite constellations, secure communications and defence aircraft into one industrial platform that national capitals rely on when they want sovereign-controlled connectivity and resiliency rather than depending on foreign private operators.

Airbus generates most of its revenue from the Airbus segment at about €55.6b, with Airbus Defence and Space contributing roughly €13.9b and Airbus Helicopters around €9.0b, supporting a market value close to €157.4b for this global aerospace and secure-SATCOM heavyweight.

"Political orders are neither pure blessing nor curse; they are intrinsic to Airbus’ role as a strategic European asset."

What could really move the needle for Airbus is how one quiet shift in European secure-orbit funding shapes pricing power across its space portfolio.

That funding shift is exactly what you unpack through the full narrative for Airbus, where Airbus’ political orders, pricing power and long term space ambitions stop looking like a simple trade off.

GomSpace Group (OM:GOMX)

GomSpace Group designs nanosatellites and turnkey constellations for government, defence and secure communications customers, putting it squarely in the sovereign-backed satellite theme. The business reports about SEK165 million from Products and carries a market value of roughly SEK2.2 billion.

GomSpace Group gives you pure-play exposure to European sovereign-owned satellite constellations at a time when governments are rethinking reliance on Starlink and similar private networks. The high P/E and funding structure mean that much depends on how one quiet shift in government procurement appetite develops.

That procurement shift makes or breaks GomSpace Group’s runway, so plug into the analyst forecasts for GomSpace Group to see where expectations could be getting ahead of reality.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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