Thales’ share of an Indian order for 36 Dassault Aviation Rafale fighter jets boosted the order book by €1.1 billion (US $1.2 billion), marking a 24 percent rise in the first nine months from a year ago, the defense electronics company reported.

The defense and security business segment booked orders worth €5.74 billion compared to €4.64 billion a year ago, Thales reported Oct. 16. That unit “benefited from the booking of the jumbo contract for systems and equipment relating to the 36 Rafale fighter aircraft ordered by India,” the company said.Thales’ share of the Indian deal is expected to be between €1.5 billion and €2 billion, Chief Financial Officer Pascal Bouchiat said on an analysts call, Reuters reported.

The electronics company has upgraded its order target for the full year in the light of the Indian purchase. Total orders for 2016 is now expected in the €15.5 billion to €16 billion range, the company said. That compares to a previous target of close to €13.6 billion, the level for 2013-2014.

The book-to-bill ratio of orders to sales, a key indicator of financial health, is expected to remain above 1 for 2016, for a third year. That confirms “its return to sustainable growth,” the company said.

Total orders rose 1 percent to €10.2 billion on a like-for-like basis. Sales rose 10.8 percent to €10 billion.

Thales forecast 2016 operating profit between €1.3 billion and €1.33 billion, a rise of 7 to 9 percent compared to 2015. That is expected to allow the operating profit target of 9.5-10 percent to be reached by 2017-2018, the company said.

India signed Sept. 23 a contract worth some €7.89 billion with France for 36 Rafales in a government-to-government deal. Dassault is the prime contractor, with Thales supplying the radar and electronics, and Safran the engine and electronics. The deal is understood to include a capability to fit long-range weapons such as MBDA Meteor and Scalp cruise missiles.

Dassault, the key minority shareholder in Thales, has asked the electronics company to boost its profitability.

Source : defensenews.com