Textron Inc.

Thank you for standing by welcome to the text Ron third quarter 2024 earnings call at this time all participants are in a listen only mode. Later, we will conduct a question and answer session, if you would like to ask a question, please press one then zero on your phone keypad should you require assistance press star zero. This conference is being recorded for digitized replay and will be available after 10am Eastern time today. running through October 24th, 2025. You may access the replay by dialing 866-207-1041 and entering the access code of 1480019. I would now like to turn the conference over to David Rosenberg, Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Thanks, Kaylee, and good morning, everyone. Before we begin, I'd like to mention we will be discussing future estimates and expectations during our call today. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risk factors, which are detailed in our SEC filings and also in today's press release. On the call today, we have Scott Donnelly, Textron's Chairman and CEO, and Frank Conner, our Chief Financial Officer. Our earnings call presentation can be found in the Investor Relations section of our website. Revenues in the quarter were $3.4 billion, up from $3.3 billion in last year's third quarter. During this year's third quarter, adjusted income from continuing operations was $1.40 per share, compared to $1.49 per share in last year's third quarter. Manufacturing cash flow before pension contributions totaled $147 million in the quarter, compared to $205 million in the third quarter of 2023. With that, I'll turn the call over to Scott.

Thanks, David, and good morning, everyone. During the quarter, aviation experienced a strike on the expiration of its existing labor agreement with the IAM. Work stoppage caused disruption to our aircraft production and service in our Wichita facilities. On October the 20th, the IAM ratified a new five-year contract, ending a four-week strike. As employees return to work and production and delivery activities recover, the resulting disruptions will impact our 2024 financial results. In the quarter, aviation delivered 41 jets, up from 39 last year, and 25 commercial turboprops, down from 38 in last year's third quarter. Aftermarket revenues grew 5% for the third quarter of 2023 versus 2023, and our year-to-date aftermarket revenues are up 8% as compared to prior year. Aviation continues to see strong demand in the quarter, booking over $1 billion in new orders. Backlog grew $162 million, ending the third quarter at $7.6 billion. During the quarter, aviation delivered the 400th Cessna Citation Latitude. The Latitude has been the best-selling aircraft in the midsize jet segment since it was introduced into service in 2015. At NBAA this week, aviation also announced the Gen 3 updates of the Citation M2, CJ3, and CJ4, reflecting continued investments in this product portfolio. At Bell, revenues were $929 million, up $175 million over last year, and second profit was $98 million, up $21 million as compared to the third quarter of last year. During the quarter, the U.S. Army announced approval of Milestone B for the FLARA program. This significant milestone establishes FLARA as a program of record and transition the program to the engineering and manufacturing development phase. This phase includes continued digital modeling, detailed hardware and software design, and fabrication of hardware, as Bell proceeds to critical design review and the first flight planned for 2026. As a result of milestone B and the subsequent EMD award, Bell's backlog grew by $2.3 billion in the quarter, now totaling $6.5 billion. On the commercial side, Bell saw increased order activity in the quarter, They'll deliver 44 helicopters, up from 23 in last year's third quarter. Textile and systems revenues and profits were slightly lower compared to last year. In the quarter, systems completed two major milestones in the Army's FTES program, a modular open systems approach conformance evaluation, and a prototype aircraft flight demonstration. The team will now proceed to option four of the competitive program, which includes delivery of a production representative aircraft system for Army testing and evaluation. Systems expanded its U.S. Navy aerosound operations with awards for two new land-based sites and three new maritime sites. Also in the quarter, Systems delivered two prototype Ripsaw M3 robotic vehicles to the U.S. Army for testing as part of Phase I of the Robotic Combat Vehicle Program. The Army is expected to sound select Phase II for a production representative prototype in mid-2025. Moving to industrial, the segment experienced lower revenues in operating profit in the quarter, driven by continuing softness in specialized vehicles and markets. Specialized vehicles continue to take cost actions to align with lower production volumes. Moving to e-aviation, the Nuva 300 continued integration testing, including a full system power-on and flight simulation run conducted this quarter. The team is now focused on preparations for the aircraft's first hover flight, which is expected in Q4 of this year. Also during the quarter, the Nexus eVTOL program continued to progress on the wing and empennage assemblies and outfitting of the ground control station. preparation for the start of flight testing, which is expected to begin in 2025. Finally, as we announced yesterday, we're making some important executive changes at Textron. Our CFO, Frank Connor, has notified us that he intends to retire from the company on February the 28th of 2025. Dave Rosenberg, our current vice president in investor relations, has been elected as our new executive vice president and chief financial officer, succeeding Frank. Dave has more than 24 years of experience in the aviation industry, and has served in a series of finance and strategy positions at Textron Aviation, Beechcraft, and its predecessor companies. In addition, Scott Hegstrom has been elected Vice President of Investor Relations, replacing Dave. Both elections are effective March 1, 2025. I want to thank Frank for his outstanding leadership and significant contributions to Textron during the 15 years, and to congratulate Dave and Scott on their new appointments. With that, I'll turn the call over to Frank.