|
This second-quarter earnings report comes a year after the
global pandemic first hit the aerospace and defense industry
supply chain, causing shutdowns, shortages and months of delays
that continue to affect the unit that makes Gulfstream business
jets.
Gulfstream delivered 21 jets versus 32 a year ago, but the
company said it saw "very strong" customer demand as the
pandemic continues. Company revenue fell marginally to $9.22
billion, below analyst estimates of $9.30 billion as revenue in
the aerospace unit was down 17.8% from the same period a year
ago.
But fresh support for the defense side of the business came last
week when the U.S. Senate's Armed Services Committee rolled out
a draft of its 2022 defense budget that boosted spending by $25
billion, potentially benefiting defense companies including
General Dynamics, and signaling defense spending could rise
under President Joe Biden.
The panel wanted more spending on ships that could add to
General Dynamics' backlog - which at the end of the second
quarter stood at $89.2 billion, the company said.
Sales in the company's combat systems unit, which makes battle
tanks, rose 8.3% to $1.90 billion, while the technologies unit,
which provides IT and mission-support services, saw an increase
of 3.2% in sales to $3.16 billion.
Net earnings rose to $737 million, or $2.61 per share, in the
quarter ended July 4, from $625 million, or $2.18 per share, a
year earlier.
Analysts on average expected the company to earn $2.55 per
share, according to Refinitiv data.
(Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna
Chandra Eluri and Steve Orlofsky)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
