GovCon Index-listed Science Applications International Corp. (NYSE: SAIC) reported third quarter earnings above the consensus Wall Street analyst forecast Thursday as the government contractor also set a record book-to-bill ratio since its September 2013 spinoff from former parent Leidos Holdings (NYSE: LDOS).
SAIC reported $0.91 earnings per share for the August-October period versus analyst expectations of $0.84 EPS as net income rose 23.53 percent to $42 million on higher operating income and lower effective tax rate on an increase in research-and-development credits.
Revenue declined 1.76 percent year-over-year to $1.11 billion at a mark just short of Wall Street’s $1.15 billion forecast.
McLean, Virginia-based SAIC cited lower material volume in defense, civilian and supply chain contracts along with a decline in U.S. Marine Corps Assault Amphibious Vehicle program activity as the prototyping phase’s completion nears.
CEO Tony Moraco told investors in a subsequent conference call the company has delivered 16 AAVs with survivability updates to the Marine Corps for tests.
The company also reported higher activity in its USMC Amphibious Combat Vehicle and General Services Administration Enterprise Operations programs, the latter of which was awarded in November 2015.
SAIC expects to deliver 16 ACV prototypes by November 2017 to the Marine Corps as part of that competition, Moraco said to analysts.
Net bookings for the quarter totaled approximately $1.9 billion at the record book-to-bill ratio of 1.7, while backlog sat at $8.23 billion as of Nov. 4 with $2.04 billion of it funded.
As of Wednesday’s close, shares in SAIC have climbed 78.77 percent since the start of the year and risen 66.34 percent over 12 months.
By comparison, the GovCon Index has added 20.37 percent on a year-to-date basis and 15.85 percent for 52 weeks.
