General Dynamics dips on Q3 sales miss, despite upbeat earnings

Revenues of General Dynamics Corp. (GD) increased at a slower than expected pace in the third quarter. The company’s stock lost about 3% after the results, despite positive earnings performance.

Earnings, adjusted for special items, rose to $2.89 per share in the September quarter from $2.52 per share in the same period last year. Analysts were looking for a slower growth. Unadjusted net income moved up to $851 million or $2.88 per share from $764 million or $2.56 a share last year.

The Falls Church, Virginia-headquartered aerospace company said its revenues climbed 20% to $9.1 billion during the three-month period, but fell short of expectations. The top-line benefitted from the recent acquisitions and demand growth across all segments. Meanwhile, there is growing concern over softness in the deliveries of business aircraft.

Information technology revenue more than doubled during the quarter, reflecting the synergies from CSRA Inc. which was acquired and integrated into the division earlier this year. Since then, CSRA won several high-value deals including government contracts.

“We took action this quarter to streamline our portfolio, drive out risk from our supply chain and deliver increasingly sophisticated products and services to our customers in an efficient and timely manner. We remain committed to generating steady and sustainable results from our businesses,” said CEO Phebe Novakovic.

Earlier today, defense technology company Northrop Grumman (NOC) reported a 78% growth in third-quarter earnings, which exceeded expectations. Revenues climbed 23% to $8.1 billion.

General Dynamics reports solid revenue and earnings growth in Q2

General Dynamic stock closed Tuesday’s trading session lower and lost about 5% in the premarket trading Wednesday. Since the beginning of the year, the stock lost about 8%.

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