Shares of Raytheon Co. jumped more than 4 percent Thursday after the company posted third-quarter profits that beat Wall Street expectations.
Tucson-based Raytheon Missile Systems saw double-digit growth in third-quarter sales and operating income.
The Waltham, Mass.-based parent company reported third-quarter profit of $447 million, or $1.47 per share, down from $515 million and $1.66 per share in the third quarter of 2014.
Though down, the results topped the average earnings estimate of $1.40 per share, according to Zacks Investment Research.
The defense contractor posted revenue of $5.78 billion in the period, up from $5.74 billion a year ago, falling slightly short of Wall Street estimates.
Raytheon said it expects full-year earnings to be $6.47 to $6.62 per share, unchanged from its last forecast, while bumping up revenue expectations slightly to the range of $23 billion to $23.3 billion.
Raytheon Missile Systems had third-quarter net sales of $1.65 billion, up 11 percent from third quarter 2014, while operating income rose in the third quarter 2015 compared to $190 million.
The company said the net sales increase was driven by higher sales across various production programs, including the TOW (Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wireless-guided) missile program and certain missile defense programs.
During the quarter, Missile Systems also booked $490 million for AIM-9X Sidewinder short-range air-to-air missiles for U.S. and international customers and $480 million for Paveway guided bomb kits for the Air Force and international customers.
Raytheon shares closed Thursday at $117.28, up $4.62 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange after the morning earnings release. Raytheon shares have increased 10 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poorβs 500 index has been nearly flat. The stock has increased more than 19 percent in the last 12 months.
