GD Gets Nett Warrior Radios Order

General Dynamics C4 system, a business wing of the aerospace and defense company General Dynamics Corporation ( GD - Analyst Report ) , has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Army for the supply of 2,025 new secure radios to the soldiers of the Nett Warrior Program. The production order, valued at $11.0 million, involves engineering support and related equipment

The Nett warrior radios are a part of the Hydrologic Modeling System (“HMS”) program. The Nett Warrior radios belong to the family of Handheld Manpack Small Form Fit radios and weigh less than two pounds. The delivery of the radios is expected to start from early 2013.

Nett Warrior is a program that offers integrated situational awareness and mission command for foot soldiers. Including the Nett Warrior radios, General Dynamics has supplied over 26,000 HMS radios to the U.S. Army. These light high-tech radios allow soldiers to have secure mobile voice, video and data communications using the government’s Soldier Radio, Wideband Networking and Mobile User Objective System Waveforms.

Waveforms transmit information to a tactical network from a radio and provide network protocols, security, routing and physical signal functions.

General Dynamics sustained its series of contract wins in the third quarter 2012 helping the company fetch stable returns. The company’s aerospace business looks encouraging and is expected to witness production ramp-up, thereby contributing to near-term top-line growth. Also, the company’s favorable military vehicle business and strong backlog orders will add to profitability.

However, defense budgetary cutbacks will remain tighter and could impede the company’s future growth opportunities. This falling knife of federal budget is rife across the sector. Thus, General Dynamics along with its peers – The Boeing Company ( BA - Analyst Report ) and Northrop Grumman Corporation ( NOC - Analyst Report ) – shares a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold rating).

The Zacks Consensus Estimates for the fourth quarter and full year 2012 are currently pegged at $1.97 per share and $7.01 per share, respectively.

Based in Falls Church, Virginia, General Dynamics engages in mission-critical information systems and technologies; land and expeditionary combat vehicles, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding and marine systems; and business aviation. The company operates through four segments: Information Systems & Technology, Combat Systems, Marine Systems, and Aerospace.