Astronics Corporation has reported its financial results for the three- and six-month periods ending June 29, 2024. Consolidated sales rose by US$23.7 million, or 13.6%, with Aerospace sales increasing by US$18.6 million and Test Systems sales by US$5.1 million.
The company's consolidated operating income climbed to US$7.6 million, compared with US$2.4 million in the prior-year period. This increase reflects the operating leverage gained from higher sales volumes, partially offset by US$4.0 million in bonus expenses as the Company's incentive programmes resumed in 2024.
However, consolidated sales and operating profit were negatively impacted by US$3.5 million due to a revision of estimated costs to complete certain long-term mass transit contracts in the Test Systems segment.
Consolidated net income was US$1.5 million, or US$0.04 per diluted share, a significant improvement compared with the net loss of US$12.0 million, or US$0.37 per diluted share, in the previous year. The tax benefit in the quarter was US$0.3 million, compared with a tax expense of US$8.1 million in the prior year.
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA increased to US$20.2 million, or 10.2% of consolidated sales, compared with adjusted EBITDA of US$15.8 million, or 9.1% of consolidated sales, in the prior-year period, primarily due to higher sales.
Astronics Corporation's Aerospace segment sales increased by US$18.6 million, or 11.7%, to US$176.9 million. This improvement was driven by a 14.6% increase, or US$16.3 million, in Commercial Transport sales, with sales to this market reaching US$128.4 million, or 64.8% of consolidated sales in the quarter, compared with US$112.1 million, or 64.3% in Q2 2023. The rise in airline spending fuelled this demand.
Military Aircraft sales rose by US$11.2 million, or 82.4%, to US$24.8 million, due to progress on the FLRAA programme and higher sales of lighting, safety, and avionics products for military aircraft. However, General Aviation sales decreased by US$6.0 million, or 24.0%, to US$19.0 million, due to lower antenna and VVIP sales.
Aerospace segment operating profit increased by 41% to US$19.3 million, compared with US$13.7 million in the same period last year. The operating margin expanded to 10.9%, an improvement of 220 basis points over the prior-year period, reflecting leverage gained from higher volume and improved production efficiencies. Operating profit in Q2 2024 was impacted by a US$3.0 million increase in litigation-related legal expenses and reserve adjustments related to an ongoing patent dispute and US$2.9 million related to the resumption of the Company's incentive programmes.
Aerospace bookings were US$192.7 million for a book-to-bill ratio of 1.09:1. The backlog for the Aerospace segment reached a record US$554.6 million at quarter end.
