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Reasons to Add BAE Systems (BAESY) to Your Portfolio Now

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BAE Systems PLC (BAESY - Free Report) is an advanced defense and aerospace systems company benefiting from the rising demand for defense products and a strong international presence. The company enjoys a stable financial position.

Let’s focus on the factors that make this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock a strong investment pick at the moment.

Growth Projections

BAESY boasts a long-term (three-to five-years) earnings growth rate of 14.2%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAESY’s 2024 earnings per share (EPS) is pegged at $3.53, indicating growth of 30.3% from the 2023 projected figure.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 sales is pegged at $34.03 billion, indicating growth of 29.4% from the 2023 estimated figure.

Debt Position

The total debt-to-capital of BAESY is 31.49%, better than 44.96% registered by the industry. This indicates that the company has less debt than its peers, which is a positive sign.

Strong Backlog and International Presence

The solid demand for BAE Systems’ products resulted in orders amounting to £21.1 billion for the half-year 2023, ending with a total backlog of £66.2 billion.

BAE Systems enjoys a strong geographic diversity with operations in the United States, the U.K, Europe, Japan, the Middle East and Australia. The United States accounted for 44% of its total sales, followed by the U.K. with 20%, during the first six months of 2023.

Return on Equity (ROE)

ROE is a measure of a company’s financial performance and shows how it is utilizing its funds. BAESY’s current ROE is 15.2%, better than the industry’s average of 11.5%, which indicates that the company is using its funds more efficiently than its peers.

Price Performance

In the past year, shares of BAESY have rallied 49.9% compared with the industry’s average growth of 23.2%.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Other Stocks to Consider

A few other top-ranked stocks in the same sector are AeroVironment Inc. (AVAV - Free Report) , Hexcel Corp. (HXL - Free Report) and Boeing Co. (BA - Free Report) . Each stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVAV’s fiscal 2024 sales is pegged at $702.67 million, implying an improvement of 30% from the fiscal 2023 estimated figure. It delivered an average earnings surprise of 47.23% in the past four quarters.

HXL boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 30.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 sales is pegged at $1.99 billion, implying a year-over-year improvement of 10.5%.

BA boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 sales is pegged at $91 billion, implying a year-over-year improvement of 18.1%.

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