Consulting, defense stocks feature among October’s top industrials gainers

As October 2026 draws to a close, industrial stocks across several subsectors have posted notable gains over the past month. Performance has varied across industries, with companies involved in consulting, equipment rental, transportation, aerospace and defense, and business services featuring among the strongest performers.

Below is a list of the 10 best-performing industrials stocks over the past one month, ranked by price performance. The list also includes each company’s Seeking Alpha Quant Rating.

The list is topped by FTI Consulting, Inc. FCN, which gained 37.21% over the past month and carries a Hold Quant Rating of 3.08. Herc Holdings Inc. HRI follows closely with a 36.71% gain and a Strong Buy rating of 4.67, while RXO, Inc. RXO ranks third with a 33.51% advance and a Strong Buy rating of 4.84. Equifax Inc. EFX, up 27.38%, and Karman Holdings Inc. KRMN, with a 26.87% gain, round out the top five.

Several other companies on the list also carry Strong Buy ratings from Seeking Alpha’s Quant system. These include Lockheed Martin Corporation LMT, with a rating of 4.79, and Huron Consulting Group Inc. HURN, at 4.59. RXO has the highest Quant Rating among the 10 stocks, at 4.84, followed by Herc Holdings at 4.67.

Here is the list:

• FTI Consulting, Inc. FCN – 1-month performance: 37.21%

• Herc Holdings Inc. HRI – 1-month performance: 36.71%

• RXO, Inc. RXO – 1-month performance: 33.51%

• Equifax Inc. EFX – 1-month performance: 27.38%

• Karman Holdings Inc. KRMN – 1-month performance: 26.87%

• Hayward Holdings, Inc. HAYW – 1-month performance: 26.18%

• Lockheed Martin Corporation LMT – 1-month performance: 25.65%

• Huron Consulting Group Inc. HURN – 1-month performance: 23.39%

• SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. SITE – 1-month performance: 23.12%

• Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. HII – 1-month performance: 21.79%

Industrials ETFs: XLI, VIS, FXR, IYJ, FIDU, and RSPN