Northrop Grumman 2015 Profit Estimate Tops Street Views

By Tess Stynes 

Northrop Grumman Corp. provided profit guidance for 2015 that topped Wall Street expectations as the defense contractor reported stronger fourth-quarter earnings.

For the year, the company forecast per-share earnings of $9.20 to $ 9.50 and sales of $23.4 billion to $23.8 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share profit of $9.11 and revenue of $23.53 billion.

Northrop, the world's fifth-largest defense contractor by sales, reported a profit of $506 million, or $2.48 a share, up from $478 million, or $2.12 a share, a year earlier. Excluding pension-related impacts and other items, earnings rose to $2.26 from $2. Revenue eased 0.8% to $6.11 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share profit of $2.25 and revenue of $5.99 billion.

The specialist in unmanned aerial vehicles, and electronic surveillance and intelligence systems reported that as of Dec. 31, its total backlog was $38.2 billion, compared with $37 billion a year earlier.

The defense industry is entering its third year of declining sales, driven by the budget cuts that started around 2012 at the Pentagon, which remains by far their largest customer.

Write to Tess Stynes at [e-mail]

Access Investor Kit for Northrop Grumman Corp.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US6668071029

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires