General Dynamics Corporation GD is set to release first-quarter 2025 results on April 23, 2025, before market open.

The company delivered a negative earnings surprise of 1.61% in the last four quarters, on average. The strong revenue performance across its business segments and lower interest expenses are likely add impetus to its overall first-quarter results.

GD’s Aerospace Unit to Post Solid Sales

Solid revenues earned from the deliveries of Gulfstream aircraft, in particular G700 jets, are likely to have bolstered the top line of the Aerospace business segment.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the Aerospace segment’s revenues in the first quarter is pegged at $2,822.5 million. This indicates a 35.4% increase from revenues reported in the year-ago quarter.

General Dynamics Corporation Price and EPS Surprise

General Dynamics Corporation price-eps-surprise | General Dynamics Corporation Quote

GD’s Marine Systems Unit Holds Potential

The Marine Systems unit’s revenues are likely to have benefited from the increased sales volume from the construction and engineering of major shipbuilding and submarine programs like the Columbia-class and Virginia-class submarines, as well as DDG-51.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the Marine segment’s revenues in the first quarter is pegged at $3,528.2 million. This calls for a 5.9% rise from the year-ago quarter’s figure.

GD’s Combat Systems Sales Likely to Rise

Strong demand for combat vehicles is likely to have boosted the Combat Systems unit’s revenue performance in the first quarter. Solid demand for artillery and munitions products is also expected to have contributed favorably to this segment’s top line.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the Combat Systems segment’s revenues in the first quarter is pegged at $2,124.4 million. This indicates an increase of 1.1% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.

GD’s Technologies Unit Likely to Increase

Enhanced digital accelerator investments supporting GDIT's consistent growth, as well as increased IT services globally, are likely to have favored the Technologies unit’s revenues.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the Technologies segment’s revenues is pegged at $3,388.3 million. This indicates a rise of 5.4% from the year-ago quarter’s figure.

GD’s Backlog Shows Decline

Our model indicates a year-over-year decline of 2% to $91.86 billion for GD’s backlog  in the first quarter. This indicates that the company is likely to have faced some challenges in securing new contracts.

Q1 Expectations for GD

With all of General Dynamics’ segments implying solid top-line growth projections, the overall revenue growth prospects remain bright.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GD’s first-quarter revenues is pegged at $11.94 billion, which indicates a 11.3% rise from the year-ago quarter.

Such a solid top-line performance projection is likely to have aided GD’s bottom line. Also, lower interest expenses and improved year-over-year operating margin at all of its segments, except Technologies, are expected to have favorably impacted the company’s overall earnings.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company’s first-quarter earnings is pegged at $3.47 per share, which indicates a rise of 20.5% from the prior-year reported figure. (Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.)

What the Zacks Model Unveils for GD

Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for General Dynamics this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is the case here, as you will see below.

GD’s Earnings ESP: GD has an Earnings ESP of +0.22%. You can uncover the best stocks before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

GD’s Zacks Rank: General Dynamics currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Other Stocks to Consider

Below, we have mentioned a few other players from the same industry that also have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings in the upcoming releases:

The Boeing Company BA is set to report first-quarter 2025 earnings on April 23, 2025, before market open. It has an Earnings ESP of +13.08% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BA’s loss is pegged at $1.54 per share. The consensus estimate for its sales is pegged at $19.29 billion, indicating year-over-year growth of 16.4%.

Embraer ERJ is set to report its first-quarter 2025 results soon. It has an Earnings ESP of +53.57% and a Zacks Rank of 1 at present.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ERJ’s earnings is pegged at 28 cents per share. The consensus estimate for its sales is pegged at $1.12 billion, indicating year-over-year growth of 24.7%.

RTX Corporation RTX is set to report its first-quarter results on April 22, before market open. It has an Earnings ESP of +2.55% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RTX’s earnings is pegged at $1.34 per share. The consensus estimate for its sales is pegged at $19.71 billion, indicating year-over-year growth of 2.1%.

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The Boeing Company (BA) : Free Stock Analysis Report

General Dynamics Corporation (GD) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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