General Dynamics Reports Solid Financial Results Amid Global Turmoil

Aerospace and Defense giant, General Dynamics, has announced solid financial results despite the rising global turmoil. The company's shares have remained steady after experiencing recent growth.

General Dynamics (ticker: GD) revealed an impressive earnings per share of $3.04 from sales amounting to $10.6 billion on Wednesday.

This figure exceeded Wall Street's expectations, as analysts were predicting earnings of $2.91 per share from sales totaling $10 billion. In the third quarter of 2022, during the same period last year, General Dynamics reported an EPS of $3.26 from sales just under $10 billion.

CEO Phebe Novakovic stated in a news release, "We continue to witness strong demand and consistent revenue growth across all sectors of our business, resulting in a significant increase in our backlog. We have observed growth in both operating and net earnings this quarter, with cash flow from operations also standing out as a highlight."

Cash flow from operations reached approximately $1.3 billion, surpassing Wall Street's estimates of around $1 billion.

Another highlight for the company was its business backlog, which set a new record at nearly $96 billion.

Following the release of these results, General Dynamics' shares experienced a 0.2% increase during early trading. However, S&P 500 futures were down by approximately 0.3%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures showed a 0.2% increase.

Since the attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists on October 6, General Dynamics' shares have risen by about 6%. This event triggered an upward trend in the stock prices of all defense companies.

To discuss the results in further detail, the company will be hosting a conference call at 9 a.m. Eastern time.

Aside from the earnings review and business update, investors are eager to learn whether or not the labor deal negotiated by General Dynamics and the United Auto Workers will be ratified by the employees. The proposed agreement includes wage increases totaling approximately 14% over the course of four years, along with measures to protect against inflation.

Leading up to Wednesday's trading session, General Dynamics' shares had experienced a decline of around 5% over the past 12 months. Prior to the recent escalation in global conflicts, investor sentiment towards defense stocks had been dampened by concerns surrounding U.S. government deficits and shutdowns.