The Austal Ltd (ASX: ASB) share price is up 2.63% to $2.34 after the military shipbuilder released its FY24 results on Friday.
Austal shares opened at $2.13, down 6.6%, before rallying to an intraday high of $2.36, up 3.5%.
Let's take a look at the report.
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Austal share price dips then lifts on FY24 results
Here are the highlights of the report:
- Total revenue of $1,469 million, down 7.3% on the prior corresponding period (pcp)
- Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of $123.7 million, up by $68.8 million on pcp
- EBIT of $56.5 million, up from a loss of $4.8 million pcp
- Net profit after tax (NPAT) of $14.9 million, up by $28.7 million on pcp
- Operating cash flow of ($13 million), down $99.8 million on pcp
- Record order book of $12.7 billion, up by $1.1 billion on pcp
- No dividend due to future requirements for cash
What else happened in FY24?
Austal continued to grow its record order book in FY24 with contract awards plus options, increasing the book's value by $1.1 billion to $12.7 billion.
The company said it remained well-positioned in the United States to support Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilding and support requirements.
In addition, a potential agreement with the Commonwealth Government would see Austal selected as Australia's strategic shipbuilder at Henderson in Western Australia.
This would underpin the long-term order book in Australia, the company said.
What did Austal management say?
Austal CEO Paddy Gregg said:
Austal delivered an improved financial result in FY2024 as our transition from existing to new programs continues.
Our record order book continues to grow and will grow further once the Australian Government announced programs are contracted through the Strategic Shipbuilding Agreement later this year.
These orders will add billions of dollars of work to our Australian operations, and coupled with recent commercial wins, means a recovery in Australasian financial results is expected.
Gregg said EBIT was in line with market guidance despite lower revenue for the year.
Looking ahead, Gregg said the company had "never seen such a potential pipeline and a real opportunity for continuous naval shipbuilding to provide greater stability to our workforce and revenue".
He added:
Austal is now working on 14 different vessel programs, providing the company with diversity and [a] long runway of work and revenue. Our focus is now on executing these programs safely and efficiently, while adding to our order book as opportunities arise.
What's next for Austal?
Austal plans to undertake a substantial capital expenditure program focusing on its United States facilities to support the delivery of its record order book.
As for Australasian operations, Gregg said:
The commercial contracts won by Austal in the past six months will ensure our Australasian yards will
be busier in FY2025 than they were in FY2024.Looking ahead, further opportunities for growth through AUKUS in submarine modules and technology are also being pursued by the Company to add to its increasing work in these two strategically important areas.
Austal said it will provide EBIT guidance at or ahead of its annual general meeting. The company commented that with the recovery in its Australasian operations, it anticipates EBIT growth in FY25.
Austal share price snapshot
The Austal share price has risen 13% in the year to date while the ASX 200 has lifted 5.9%.
