• Revenue of $9.4 billion, up 7.3% from year-ago quarter; growth in all four segments
• Net earnings of $708 million, diluted EPS of $2.48
• Record-high backlog of $89.6 billion, up 4.5% from year-ago quarter

RESTON, Va. – General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) today reported first-quarter 2021 net earnings of $708 million on revenue of $9.4 billion. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $2.48.

Revenue grew year-over-year by 7.3% company-wide, with growth in all four segments and growth exceeding 10% in the Aerospace and Marine Systems segments. Company-wide operating margin for the quarter was 10%. Orders remained strong, with backlog up 4.5% from the year-ago quarter to a record $89.6 billion.

“Continued recovery from the pandemic coupled with our focus on operating performance yielded a strong quarter, with year-over-year earnings growth driven by increased revenue across all of our four business segments,” said Phebe N. Novakovic, chairman and chief executive officer. “Our improved cash outlook enabled us to continue investing in future growth while returning capital to shareholders.”

Cash

Net cash provided by operating activities in the quarter totaled $3 million, compared with a use of cash of $666 million in the year-ago quarter. Free cash flow from operations, defined as net cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures, was a net outflow of $131 million. During the quarter, the company invested $134 million in capital expenditures, paid $315 million in dividends, and repurchased $744 million in shares at an average price of $161.38 per share, ending the quarter with $1.8 billion in cash and equivalents on hand.

Backlog

Total backlog at the end of first-quarter 2021 was $89.6 billion, up 4.5% from the year-ago quarter. Estimated potential contract value, representing management’s estimate of value in unfunded indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contracts and unexercised options, was $41.8 billion. Total estimated contract value, the sum of all backlog components, was $131.4 billion at the end of the quarter.

Order activity was strong across the company, with a total book-to-bill ratio (orders divided by revenue) of 1-to-1 for the quarter. Orders rose faster than revenue in the Aerospace and Technologies segments, with book-to-bill ratios for the quarter of 1.3-to-1 and 1.1-to1, respectively.

Significant awards in the quarter included a contract with a maximum potential value of $12.6 billion among multiple awardees to provide information technology (IT) and technical support services to intelligence agencies under the Solutions for the Information Technology Enterprise (SITE) III program; $1.9 billion from the U.S. Navy for the construction of a 10th Block V Virginia-class submarine; a contract with a maximum potential value of $805 million among multiple awardees to provide ship modernization services to the Navy; $295 million from the U.S. Army for various munitions and ordnance; $225 million from the Army for inventory management and support services for its Stryker vehicle fleet; $200 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide Coronavirus (COVID-19)-related contact-center operations and support services; $190 million in contracts from the Army for technical support and upgrades for Abrams main battle tanks; and $175 million from the Army for computing and communications equipment under the Common Hardware Systems-5 (CHS-5) program.

About General Dynamics

Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, General Dynamics is a global aerospace and defense company that offers a broad portfolio of products and services in business aviation; ship construction and repair; land combat vehicles, weapons systems and munitions; and technology products and services. General Dynamics employs more than 100,000 people worldwide and generated $37.9 billion in revenue in 2020. More information is available at www.gd.com.

Certain statements made in this press release, including any statements as to future results of operations and financial projections, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual future results and trends may differ materially from what is forecast in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors. Additional information regarding these factors is contained in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, its Annual Report on Form 10-K, its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and its Current Reports on Form 8-K. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made. The company does not undertake any obligation to update or publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or changes in expectations after the date of this press release.

WEBCAST INFORMATION: General Dynamics will webcast its first-quarter 2021 financial results conference call at 9 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 28, 2021. The webcast will be a listen-only audio event available at www.gd.com. An on-demand replay of the webcast will be available one hour after the end of the call and end on May 5, 2021. To hear a recording of the conference call by telephone, please call 877-344-7529 (international: 412-317-0088); passcode 10153889. Charts furnished to investors and securities analysts in connection with General Dynamics’ announcement of its financial results are available at www.gd.com.