General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) saw its revenue increase 10.5 percent year-over-year to $10.2 billion during the second quarter of fiscal 2023 and reported net earnings of $744 million and $2.70 in diluted earnings per share.
The Reston, Virginia-based defense and aerospace contractor said Wednesday it achieved a record-high backlog of $91.4 billion with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.2-to-1 during the quarter.
Notable Q2 awards for the company’s three defense segments include a potential $1.4 billion contract with the U.S. Army for munitions and ordnance; $1.1 billion for long-lead materials and advance construction for the U.S. Navy’s Block V Virginia-class submarines; and $735 million award from the Navy to build another John Lewis-class (T-AO-205) fleet replenishment oiler.
General Dynamics reported $731 million in net cash from operating activities and ended the quarter with a cash on hand of $1.2 billion. The company spent $288 million to repurchase shares and paid $360 million in dividends in the quarter.
Phebe Novakovic, Chairman and CEO of General Dynamics, said she expects the company to continue to perform for the rest of 2023.
“Our businesses demonstrated solid momentum despite continued supply chain headwinds in several units, achieving the highest-ever revenue for a mid-year quarter, record-high backlog and very strong cash flow,” said Novakovic, a nine-time Wash100 awardee.
At an earnings call Wednesday, the chief executive responded to an analyst’s question about the munitions growth profile.
“We’ve already increased munitions capacity and working with the federal government and the Army and OSD in particular, we have a very detailed plan to further increase capacity, which will allow us then to increase production very rapidly and move to the left, the munition availability to meet the United States’ needs and, frankly, external needs as well,” Novakovic noted.
