Northrop Grumman Q3 Earnings Report

Investing.com — Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) reported mixed results for the fiscal third quarter, featuring earnings that beat expectations, while revenue numbers fell short. The aerospace and defense company also increased its operating income and adjusted earnings guidance for the full year.

Earnings & Revenue

• Earnings Per Share (EPS): $7.00 (consensus estimate: $6.08)
• Revenue: $10 billion (2.3% year-over-year increase, estimate: $10.18 billion)

Operating Income

• Operating Income: $1.12 billion (up 10% year-over-year, estimate: $1.05 billion)

Segment Performance

• Aeronautics Systems: Sales totaled $2.88 billion (4% year-over-year increase, estimate: $2.92 billion)
• Defense Systems: Sales of $2.08 billion (47% growth, estimate: $2.28 billion)
• Mission Systems: Sales of $2.82 billion (7.4% year-over-year increase, met expectations)
• Space Systems: Sales reached $2.87 billion (down 18% year-over-year, above estimate of $2.82 billion)

Backlog

• Backlog: $84.80 billion at the end of the quarter.

Guidance

Looking ahead, Northrop Grumman raised its 2024 segment operating income guidance to $4.52 billion – $4.57 billion from the previous $4.50 billion – $4.57 billion. Adjusted EPS guidance increased to $25.65 – $26.05 from the prior $24.90 – $25.30.

Kathy Warden, chair, CEO, and president of Northrop Grumman, stated, “Based on the strength of our year-to-date results and our positive outlook for the future, we are once again raising our 2024 guidance. Sales remain on target for 5% growth this year and the deliberate actions we are taking to improve margin rates have resulted in further expansion this quarter.”

She added, “With our investments to create capacity and focus on performance, we continue to deliver value for our customers and our shareholders. As we look toward 2025, our outlook includes continued top line growth, margin rate expansion and greater than 20% free cash flow growth.