Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Huntington Ingalls' Unit Delivers Its REMUS 620 UUVs to NOAA

Read MoreHide Full Article

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII - Free Report) business unit, Mission Technologies, shipped two REMUS 620 uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) for improved high-resolution ocean floor imaging.

This speedy manufacturing and delivery to NOAA illustrates the company’s dedication to supporting customers’ mission objectives through rapid development and deployment of new capabilities and technologies.

Significance of HII’s REMUS 620 UUV
 

The REMUS 620, unveiled 22 months ago in November 2022, is the first medium-class UUV designed to provide a full range of above and below-water capabilities across extended distances.

The REMUS 620 is the longest-reaching UUV in its class, featuring capabilities that combine field-proven durability with increased efficiency and adaptability. It offers unequaled multi-day endurance, range and stealth, with a battery life of up to 110 hours and a range of 275 nautical miles.

Its open architecture, modular design and smooth payload integration let you quickly switch between any mission, be it submerged or above, including electronic warfare, hydrographic surveys, mine countermeasures, intelligence gathering and surveillance.

HII’s Growth Prospects
 

The ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia has prompted other countries to improve their defense arsenals. UUVs are known for their capacity to perform hazardous maritime tasks, such as mine countermeasure missions and port patrol. As a result, as investments in undersea combat capabilities have expanded dramatically in recent years, so has the demand for cutting-edge unmanned underwater vehicles.

The Fortune Business Insights firm projects the global unmanned underwater vehicle market to witness a CAGR of 13.5% during the 2024-2032 period. This growth prospect is anticipated to bode well for Huntington Ingalls, as it is the largest producer of UUVs worldwide.

Huntington Ingalls has delivered more than 600 UUVs to 30 countries, including 14 NATO members, so far. In March 2024, HII unveiled its REMUS 130 UUV, the third generation of REMUS 100 vehicles, which offers cutting-edge features, more flexibility and cutting-edge capabilities to improve underwater operations. Moreover, in May 2024, the UK Royal Navy signed an agreement to buy a fleet of Remus UUVs from HII.

Opportunities for HII’s Peers
 

Apart from Huntington Ingalls, a few other defense players that can gain from the expanding UUV market are The Boeing Company (BA - Free Report) , BAE Systems (BAESY - Free Report) and General Dynamics Corp. (GD - Free Report) .

Boeing’s Echo Voyager is a fully autonomous XLUUV class UUV that can be used for a variety of missions, which were previously impossible due to traditional UUV limitations. The vehicle's superior autonomy allows it to operate at sea for months at a time, providing a more cost-effective, mission-capable alternative than standard UUVs.

The Boeing stock boasts a long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate of 21.3%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 sales indicates an improvement of 20.3% from the 2024 estimated figure.

BAE Systems’ Riptide UUV-12 is easily adaptable to satisfy a wide range of mission requirements, including those requiring bigger and more powerful payloads. It can provide essential abilities such as Radio Frequency signal collecting, active acoustics, Acoustic Identification of Friend or Foe, mission autonomy and navigation.

The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 12.4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BAESY’s 2024 sales implies an improvement of 36.3% from the previous year’s level.

General Dynamics’ Bluefin SandShark is a one-person-portable, low-cost autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle designed to leverage today’s miniaturized sensors and serve as a development platform for the future generation.

The GD stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 12.6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for General Dynamics’ 2024 sales implies an improvement of 13.5% from the previous year’s level.

HII Stock Outperforms Industry
 

In the past three months, HII shares have risen 7.2% compared with the industry’s 5% growth.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

HII’s Zacks Rank
 

Huntington Ingalls currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).  You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Published in