We have expanded our list of American companies that provide counterterrorism and of public companies selling to law enforcement and to the Department of Homeland Security.

Some things are going to be obvious. Airport security and security at public events will be now be on higher alert. If the trends of terrorism and sabotage keep escalating, Americans almost certainly will have to deal with more audio and video surveillance, hazardous materials suits being shown in the news, and increased monitoring of all sorts. These trends are likely to bring increased orders for companies that serve the intelligence and law enforcement communities.

The companies we have identified manufacture and sell products or offer services that fall under law enforcement and under Homeland Security. Some of these are spread into other areas, and we did not include the big corporate giants that have 2% or so tied to these markets. Note that some of these companies are very small, and some have declining revenue due to lower security expenses in recent years.

Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK) may be thought of for rocket boosters and propulsion for air and space technologies, but the company also happens to be the largest bullet manufacturer in America for the military, law enforcement and Joe Public. The company supplies bullets and ammunition to the Department of Justice, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, Armed Forces and others. ATK operates the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant and recently announced the delivery of 2 billion 7.62 mm rounds to the U.S. Army. ATK’s value is almost $2.4 billion, and it is expected to generate about $4.3 billion in sales in 2013.

American Science & Engineering Inc. (NASDAQ: ASEI) scans for bombs and weapons in transportation systems. It is also involved in mail room screening as well, and any more ricin poison being sent in the mail should increase its public exposure. That being said, revenue has been in decline. This company has a market value of about $492 million, and 2012 annual sales were $203.5 million and expected to drop ahead.

Command Security Corp. (NYSEMKT: MOC) is tiny, as its market value is only about $16 million, but sales in fiscal 2012 were $141 million. The company claims to have 6,000 highly trained personnel for airport security, banks, government offices, health care facilities and other corporate and enterprise security.

FLIR Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR) handles various degrees of imaging via night-time vision, thermal imaging, chemical and biological detection, explosives detection and more. With a market value of about $3.5 billion, it has expected sales for 2013 projected to be more than $1.5 billion.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS) is considered to be a national security technology player selling products, services and solutions for security in the United States. While diversified, Kratos recently announced contracts to deploy specialized security systems for mass transportation, rail and critical infrastructure awards. The company has a market value of about $285 million, and it is expected to have sales of close to $975 million in 2013.

L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LLL) is an amalgamation of command, control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance products and services. The company has made many acquisitions over the past decade, and it is involved in many other defense applications. L-3 has a market value of about $7.3 billion, and it is expected to generate $12.6 billion in sales in 2013.

Lakeland Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: LAKE) is very small, but it makes chemical protective clothing, disposable protective clothing, safety gloves, turnout gear, high visibility clothing, flame and heat-resistant clothing and other items. Its value is a mere $19 million, and this one is often skipped or overlooked because of its size and liquidity. Sales are running at just under $100 million per year.

NICE Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ: NICE) is a software company that captures and analyzes interactions and transactions in order to realize intent and to extract and leverage insights real-time. Technically this is not an American company, as it is based in Israel, but the company claims that about 25,000 organizations in 150 countries are direct or indirect clients. Its market value is $2.1 billion, and 2012 sales were almost $880 million, but note that the company is diversified in many segments.

OSI Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: OSIS) is a real player involved in homeland security, health care, defense and aerospace industries. In this aspect, it is known well for its Rapiscan Systems for security screening in airports, ports and buildings. OSI has a market value of about $1.1 billion and is expected to have 2013 sales of more than $830 million.

Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) may still best be known for its Patriot Missiles and their more modern replacements, but it is also involved in integrated communications and intelligence. This ranges from seeing through walls and to communications monitoring via its Applied Signal Technology acquisition in recent years for its advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems and services. Raytheon is worth about $18.7 billion, and sales are expected to be about $23.8 billion in 2013.

Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: SWHC) and Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc. (NYSE: RGR) are the two public company gun leaders in America. It sure seems that recent events may drive yet another round of strong gun demand. Gun control legislation also remains up in the air after 14 people were stabbed at a college in Houston and with two bombs going off in Boston. It is possible that the argument against gun ownership may have lost some of its bite. Smith & Wesson is worth about $560 million, and the expected 2013 sales are about $580 million. Sturm Ruger has a market value of about $934 million and is expected to have sales of about $514 million in 2013.

TASER International Inc. (NASDAQ: TASR) makes the tasers, or stun guns, for law enforcement. It is hard to know if terror scares will lift its unit orders, and this company’s glory days were in 2003 to 2005, when the stock went from less than $5 to $30 briefly. Its shares have traded sideways since for the most part, and it is very thinly covered by Wall St. TASER’s market value is still more than $410 million, and sales were almost $115 million in 2012.

Many of these companies have been beneficiaries in the past due to Homeland Security orders, counterterrorism and increased sales to law enforcement and enterprises. We are not trying to pick winners here, nor are we signaling that these are all stocks to buy. We strongly suggest that any investors looking to capitalize on this trend do some serious, deep-dive research of their own on these and other companies before taking any action.

Needless to say, you can bet that airport security and security at public events will be now be alerted and higher. If the trends do manage to escalate, America likely will have to deal with more audio and video surveillance, hazardous materials suits and more and more monitoring of all sorts. The long and short of the matter is that this will translate to increased orders for companies that serve the intelligence and law enforcement communities.

Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK) is known for boosters and propulsion for air and space technologies, but the company also happens to be the largest bullet manufacturer in America for military, law enforcement and retail. It supplies bullets and ammunition to the Armed Forces, Department of Justice, FBI, Department of Homeland Security and others, and it operates the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant. The company even announced the delivery of 2 billion 7.62 mm rounds to the U.S. Army last September. ATK’s value is almost $2.4 billion and it is expected to generate about $4.3 billion in sales in 2013.

FLIR Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR) has remained independent and it handles various degrees of imaging via night-time vision, thermal imaging, chemical and biological detection, explosives detection and more. With a market value of more than $3.5 billion today, its expected sales for 2013 are projected to be more than $1.5 billion.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a national security technology company providing products, services and solutions for security in the United States. While diversified, Kratos recently announced contracts to deploy specialized security systems for mass transportation, rail and critical infrastructure awards. The company has a market value of about $285 million and it is expected to have sales of close to $975 million in 2013.

L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LLL) has made many acquisitions after the 2001 to 2003 period, and it offers command, control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance products and services. It is also involved in many other defense applications. L-3 has a market value of about $7.3 billion, and it is expected to generate $12.6 billion in sales in 2013.

Lakeland Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: LAKE) is very small, but it makes chemical protective clothing, disposable protective clothing, safety gloves, turnout gear, high visibility clothing, flame and heat-resistant clothing and other items. Its value is a mere $19 million, and we would point out that this one is often skipped or overlooked because of its size and liquidity. Sales are running at just under $100 million per year.

OSI Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: OSIS) covers the homeland security, health care, defense and aerospace industries, but it is known for its Rapiscan Systems for security screening in airports, ports and buildings. It has a market value of about $1.1 billion and is expected to have 2013 sales of more than $830 million.

Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) may still best be known for its Patriot Missiles and their more modern replacements, but do not forget some of its other outfits involved in integrated communications and intelligence. This ranges from seeing through walls to much more. Raytheon also acquired Applied Signal Technology in recent years for its advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems and services. Raytheon is worth some $18.7 billion, and sales are expected to be about $23.8 billion in 2013.

Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: SWHC) and Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc. (NYSE: RGR) are the two gun leaders in America and allied nations. We cannot help but wonder what this does for renewing gun demand ahead of gun control legislation. It seems that after 14 people were stabbed at a college in Houston just last week, and with two bombs going off, that the argument against gun ownership may have lost some of its bite. Smith & Wesson is worth about $560 million, and the expected 2013 sales are about $580 million. Sturm Ruger has a market value of about $934 million and is expected to have sales of about $514 million in 2013.

TASER International Inc. (NASDAQ: TASR) makes what you would call Tasers, or stun guns, for law enforcement. Whether its orders will increase as a result is probably up for debate, but its shares enjoyed glory days from 2003 to 2005, when the stock went from less than $5 to $30 briefly. Its shares have traded sideways for the most part, and it is very thinly covered by Wall St. TASER’s market value is still more than$410 million, and sales were almost $115 million in 2012.

There are many other companies that will stand to benefit if the spending around terrorism, homeland defense, surveillance and espionage rises in the near future. We are not trying to pick winners here by any means. Many information technology, service holding companies and larger defense and warfare companies have many overlaps in homeland security.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NYSE: PANW), Sourcefire Inc. (NASDAQ: FIRE), CheckPoint Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CHKP), Websense Inc. (NASDAQ: WBSN), Vasco Data Security International Inc. (NASDAQ: VDSI), and Proofpoint Inc. (NASDAQ: PFPT) all opened lower or nearly flat this morning.

At the same time that Fortinet said its lowered expectations are partly due to “a few deal” that failed to close as expected, the Obama administration budget proposal to Congress seeks to boost spending on cybersecurity in the public sector by about $1 billion in fiscal year 2014, to more than $13 billion. In the Defense Department alone, an additional $800 million is proposed for cybersecurity operations.

Ironically, the largest providers of security systems to the Defense Department are traditional defense firms like Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT), Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN), and British-based BAE Systems Inc. These firms got a share price boost today, as did SAIC Inc. (NYSE: SAI).

Firms like Fortinet do sell to government agencies, although the sales are often made indirectly through another reseller or government contractor. In its Form 10-K for last year Fortinet said that it has had “limited traction” in sales to the U.S. federal government.

It seems obvious that Fortinet and the other primarily non-defense firms should begin to focus more on government sale since that appears to be where the money will be. Just sayin’.

Fortinet shares have been hit hard today, down more than 14% at $18.75 in a 52-week range of $17.53 to $28.23.

When governments threaten with the use of nuclear weapons, the world still listens. The flip side to this is that the news acts a bit like a gift to defense contractors. It is pretty hard to say that you are shutting down military spending when you have a dictator talking about nuking you.

Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) is up 0.7% at $95.74 and is within a dollar of the 52-week high.

Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC) is up 1.4% at $70.40 anhd also with $1 of a year high.

General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) is up 1.8% at $68.21 and is still close to 10% under its 52-week high of $74.05.

Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) is up 1.1% at $58.17 and its 52-week high is $59.34.

Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK) is trading up only 0.15% at $70.72 against a 52-week high of $72.57, but that company has handily risen to domestic bullet demand in the United States.

There is still no positive development for gold.

The U.S. should not forget that our precision targeting tools have within their range the Anderson air force base on Guam where the B-52 takes off, the Japanese mainland where nuclear submarines are deployed and the navy bases on Okinawa.

North Korea already had threatened a nuclear attack on the U.S., a threat that no one outside North Korea believes is within its capabilities. But all this tough talk could lead to a bump in U.S. defense positioning and an increase in defense spending, currently facing a spending cut of $45 billion through the end of the 2013 fiscal year in September.

Defense contractors like Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT), Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC), General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD), Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN), Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and BAE Systems have all seen share prices fall by as much as 8% since the beginning of the year before recovering to current levels of around plus or minus 1%. The share price move likely reflects on an aspect of defense that has come front and center only recently: cyber security.

A cyberattack against several of South Korea’s broadcasters and banks yesterday is being attributed to the North Koreans. When you stop and think about it, North Korean cyberattacks are disruptive, inexpensive, and far less likely to draw a military response from the United States, Japan or South Korea. It is a nearly perfect threat.

The U.S. companies that are developing systems to thwart cyberattacks from North Korea, Iran, or any other country with a bone to pick with the U.S. are the most likely to benefit from the heightened focus on cyber warfare.

Both Raytheon and Lockheed Martin have joined AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Enhanced Cybersecurity Services program under which the companies may have access to government intelligence that they can use to beef up their cyber security services and then resell the services to their own customers. President Obama issued an executive order in mid-February authorizing the program.

Raytheon and General Dynamics have acquired a host of cyber security companies in the past five years or so and, along with Lockheed Martin, are actively offering cyber security products both to the government and to private businesses. Consulting firms like Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp. (NYSE: BAH) and International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) are also in the cyber security business, as is Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ).

One other defense sector that could see a boost is missile defense. After all, if North Korea is threatening to fire missiles at U.S. installations and even the U.S. mainland, then it’s possible that there will be some additional calls within the U.S. for developing a massive — and massively expensive — missile-based defense system. Raytheon is the country’s leading missile maker.

For the traditional defense contractors, cyber security is a far cry from multibillion dollar weapons systems’ contracts, but they will go where the money is. And right now, the money is in cyberspace.

Click here to see the companies profiting most from war

These companies have benefited tremendously from the growth in military spending in the U.S., which by far has the largest military budget in the world. In 2000, the U.S. defense budget was approximately $312 billion. By 2011, that figure had grown to $712 billion. Arm sales grew alongside general defense spending growth. SIPRI noted that between 2002 and 2011, arms sales among the top 100 companies grew by 51%.

However, the trend has reversed recently. In 2011, the top 100 arms dealers sold 5% less compared to 2010. Susan Jackson, a defense expert at SIPRI, said in an email to 24/7 Wall St. that austerity measures in Western Europe and the U.S. have delayed or slowed down the procurement of different weapons systems. Austerity concerns have exacerbated matters since 2011. The U.S. federal government budget cuts that took effect beginning this month — commonly known as sequestration — mean that military spending could contract by more than $500 billion over the coming decade unless some of the cuts are reversed.

In addition, the U.S.’s involvement in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have wound down significantly. The last American convoy in Iraq left the country in December of 2011. Troop withdrawals from Afghanistan also began in 2011. Finally, SIPRI pointed out that sanctions on arms transfers to Libya also played a role in declining arms sales.

Many of these companies are looking overseas to try to make up for slowing sales in the U.S. and Europe. Arms producers are especially keen on areas in Latin America, the Middle East and parts of Asia, Jackson said. For instance, BAE is in the process of securing contracting agreements with Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the chief financial officer of Northrop Grumman has recently indicated his company may sell its Global Hawk airplane to South Korea or Japan.

Based on the report, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 10 companies with the most arms sales in 2011. Arms were defined as sales to military customers, either for procurement or for export, but do not include sales of general purpose items such as oil or computer equipment to military customers. We also looked at arms sales from 2010, as well as the company’s total sales in 2010. Furthermore, we considered the company’s 2011 total sales, profits and the total number of employees at the company, all provided by SIPRI.

There are the 10 companies profiting the most from war.

Defense contractors issued dire warnings last summer on possible job cuts to their civilian workforces. Defense firms Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT), Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA), Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC), General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD), Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) and London-based BAE Systems and their suppliers employ more than 1 million people and their facilities are scattered all across the country. Many of these firms announced plans that would have resulted in the loss of several hundred thousand jobs if the proposed sequester were implemented. The plans were mostly withdrawn right before the November elections, following the sequestration deal because no one thought it would ever be implemented.

Guess again. If Congress and the President fail to reach an agreement by tomorrow, the cuts go into effect on Friday. Because it is politics, there are several possibilities for getting out of the mess, but that will all take some time.

Cuts just to the U.S. Army budget total $18 billion for the current fiscal year. According to the Army, such cuts would lead to the cancellation of remodeling and modernization plans at many bases, cuts to orders at several thousand suppliers, of which about one-third are already at risk of bankruptcy, and delays to contractor repairs to thousands of vehicles, communications devices and weapons. Total defense spending is set to fall by $45 billion through the end of this fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin, the largest defense contractor, already has forecast record earnings for 2013, even in the face of the impending budget cuts, while both Raytheon and General Dynamics forecast lower-than-expected profits for the year. Lockheed now says it does not plan to cut jobs. Raytheon, the world’s largest missile maker, is sitting on a record backlog of orders.

The defense firms are going to take a hit, but the largest contractors appear unlikely to suffer a lot. Since the beginning of the year, all the defense stocks named earlier, except Boeing, are trading lower by about 2% to 5%. Where the cuts will hurt most are in the smaller firms that often perform as subcontractors. Any job losses at these firms will affect the local economies. The big defense firms look poised to remain above the fray — at least for now.

Despite the rhetoric of the drastic budget cuts, outlays for the U.S. military and its modernization campaign actually grew by 10% in January. The Department of Defense reported that cash outlays came in at $19 billion, with funding for the Navy and the Air Force up 14% while Army expenditures declined by 3%.

According to the analysts at UBS A.G. (NYSE: UBS), defense stocks are not reflecting a sequestration threat. While conventional wisdom seems to reflect the real possibility that most of the more draconian budget cuts will not survive, something has to give. So UBS analysts concentrated their research efforts to find the stocks with the least amount of budget risk.

Based on a lower risk profile and better opportunities for cost reduction, UBS is positive on General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD), Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN), Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK) and, for European exposure, BAE Systems, which trades on the London Stock exchange.

While there is no question that the budget argument stays center stage for quite some time, the U.S. military is not in a position where it can fall behind in an ever-changing and increasingly dangerous world. No politician, regardless of party, wants to be branded with not supporting our troops and military. So while cuts will be made, they will be less about equipment and weapons and more about manpower and theaters of warfare.

In the final quarter of 2012, S&P 500 dividends per share rose 23% over the 2011 fourth quarter, as well as by 15% sequentially. These figures exclude the surge in “special” or nonrecurring dividends that companies rushed to pay in calendar year 2012 before a potential (and realized, for high earners) rise in dividend tax rates.

The clear advantage to investors in owning quality dividend-yielding stocks instead of overpriced bonds has never been greater. UBS A.G. (NYSE: UBS) has released their Dividend Ruler list, which highlights their top picks in the global dividend stock arena. We screened their list for the top 10 yielding stocks. The stocks that made the list have to meet their standards for earnings and dividend growth.

• AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE: AZN) yield 5.90%
• Total S.A. (NYSE: TOT) yield 5.0%
• Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) yield 4.30%
• British American Tobacco PLC (NYSEMKT: BTI) yield 4.075%
• Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) yield 3.70%
• The Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE: TD) yield 3.70%
• Northeast Utilities (NYSE: NU) yield 3.57%
• Unilever PLC (NYSE: UL) yield 3.39%
• NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE: NEE) yield 3.30%
• Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) yield 3.20%

Stocks that consistently raise their dividends, combined with a strong earnings growth profile, contribute to solid total returns for investors. As we have detailed before, the sell-off in the Treasury and investment grade bond market is not a question of if, but when. Now is the time to take profits in the bond market and scale some money into quality dividend yielding growth stocks.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.02% today, now at 79.941. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.3% at 661.98, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil closed up 0.8% today, at $95.95 a barrel following a rise in crude stocks (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 0.5% at $113.28 a barrel. Natural gas is down 2.8% today at about $3.45 per million BTUs after this week’s storage report (more coverage here). Gold settled down 1% today at $1,669.90 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up 46 points to 13,825.33 (0.33%), the NASDAQ fell more than 23 points (-0.74%) to 3,130.38, and the S&P 500 was flat at 1,494.82.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) started as ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE: EMR) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank; CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE: CVS) removed from U.S. Focus List at Goldman Sachs; Randgold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) raised to ‘buy’ at BofA/ML; and Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) cut to ‘hold’ at Canaccord Genuity.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday resulted in several price moves today, including these: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is down 12% at $452.53 (more coverage here); Amgen Corp. (NASDAQ: AMGN) is down 0.5% at $82.63; SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) is up 3.2% at $49.19 (more coverage here); F5 Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV) is up 4.9% at $103.60; Noble Corp. (NYSE: NE) is down 5.4% at $37.70; NVR Inc. (NYSE: NVR) is up 2% at $1,001.58 after posting a new 52-week high of $1,023.99 earlier today; Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) is up 2.2% at $48.08 after posting a new 52-week high of $49.42 earlier today; 3M Corp. (NYSE: MMM) is up 0.2% at $99.68 after posting a new 52-week high of $99.80 earlier today (more coverage here); Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) is up 2.6% at $35.82; Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) is down 2.6% at $93.56; Raytheon Inc. (NYSE: RTN) is down 3% at $56.49; Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) is up 0.9% at $11.46 after posting a new 52-week high of $11.62 earlier today (more coverage here); Union Pacific Corp. (NYSE: UNP) is down 0.7% at $134.35; United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) is up 1.3% at $25.33 after posting a new 52-week high of 26.36 earlier today; and Xerox Corp. (NYSE: XRX) is up 2.6% at $7.78.

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Juniper Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: JNPR), Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX), Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL), Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON), Kimberly-Clark Corp. (NYSE: KMB), and Weyerhaeuser Corp. (NYSE: WY).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is down 8.7% today at $4.24. The mobile handset maker posted earnings that were better than expected, but the outlook is weak. More coverage here.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is up 42.5% at $147.16 after posting a new 52-week high of $149.17 earlier today. The video distribution firm posted much better earnings than expected and grew subscriber numbers significantly. More coverage here.

Swift Transportation Co. (NYSE: SWFT) is up 28.7% at $13.16 after posting a new 52-week high of $13.24 earlier today. The trucking company posted strong earnings last night.

Stay tuned for Friday. We have noted the following event on the schedule (all times Eastern):

• 10:00 a.m. – New home sales