Ondas Stock Is Turning Into One Of Retail’s Hottest Plays: Here’s What Is Driving The Hype

In the last 12 months alone, ONDS stock has soared over 500% with no signs of cooling, driven by bullish Wall Street calls and Washington’s growing focus on drones.

• The DHS launched a new drone and counter-drone office as the Trump administration leans into unmanned systems for border and homeland security.
• In December, Ondas Autonomous Systems (OAS) was selected as the prime contractor for a major development and commercialization program on behalf of a major governmental entity.
• Stifel said that the large capital raise demonstrates Ondas' unique value-generating flywheel is accelerating.

Investors are tracking a growing list of catalysts that continue to push Ondas Holdings higher, with fresh developments emerging almost daily in the new year and fueling expectations of further upside, especially among retail traders.

Ondas now carries a market capitalization of about $5.1 billion and is up roughly 35% year-to-date, driven by a combination of company-specific and macro tailwinds. These include the recent closing of a $1 billion registered direct offering, a price target hike from Stifel, and heightened attention on the role of drones in U.S. national security.

Trump's Team Goes All-In On Drones

Adding to the momentum, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem highlighted the strategic importance of unmanned systems in a post on X earlier in the day, calling drones the "new frontier of American air superiority."

Noem said that under President Donald Trump, the U.S. is entering a new era focused on defending air superiority and strengthening both border and homeland security.

"With the creation of the DHS Program Executive Office for Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems, President Trump continues his historic legacy in developing American dominance," Noem said.

DHS on Monday announced the launch of a new office dedicated to rapidly procuring and deploying drone and counter-drone technologies, with the new office overseeing strategic investments in drone and counter-drone technologies that can outpace evolving threats and tactics.

The move is on the heels of the company's announcement in early December, saying that Ondas Autonomous Systems (OAS) had been selected as the prime contractor for a major development and commercialization program on behalf of a major governmental entity, where OAS will architect, develop, and integrate a full-scale drone-based autonomous border-protection system designed to operate across both fixed and mobile environments.

The company expects to receive the initial purchase order in January 2026 to launch a multi-phase program spanning the next two years.

Shares of Red Cat Holdings closed up 2% following the news, while L3Harris stock rose 1.5% on Monday.

Closing of $1 Billion Offering

On Monday, the company said it closed the registered direct offering of 19 million of its common stock. Ondas said it estimates net proceeds from the offering to be about $959.2 million, after deducting placement agent fees and estimated offering expenses.

“If the common stock warrants are fully exercised on a cash basis, Ondas has the potential to raise approximately $3.4 billion in additional gross proceeds,” the company added.

Stifel’s View

Stifel raised the firm's price target on Ondas to $17 from $13 and maintained a ‘buy’ rating, according to TheFly. The firm said that the large capital raise demonstrates Ondas' unique value-generating flywheel is accelerating and added that Ondas was successfully raising more capital at a higher valuation than the firm had previously assumed.

What Is Retail Thinking?

Retail sentiment on Ondas Holdings was in the ‘extremely bullish’ territory compared to the ‘bearish’ a month ago, with message volumes at ‘extremely high’ levels, according to data from Stocktwits.

Chatter on Stocktwits for Ondas was picking up steam. A bullish user on Stocktwits said that Ondas was making “chess moves.”

Shares of Ondas Holdings have jumped more than 500% in the last 12 months.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.<