Despite $1 million loss last quarter, Mercury Systems optimistic about defense sector

Mercury Systems, Inc., of Chelmsford, MA, a provider of commercially-developed, open sensor and Big Data processing systems, software and services for defense, intelligence and commercial applications, reported a net loss of $1 million for the quarter that ended December 31, 2013, and outlined its upbeat plans for the future.

“Mercury delivered solid results in the second quarter despite challenging conditions in the defense industry,” said Mark Aslett, president and CEO, Mercury Systems. “Total revenue approached the high end of our guidance range, and we delivered financial results at or above the high end of our guidance across all of our other key metrics.”

“Over the past two quarters, we have successfully laid the groundwork for the second and final phase of our acquisition integration strategy, which began in our fiscal third quarter,” Aslett said. “The first phase of the strategy, which culminated with our acquisition of Micronetics in fiscal 2013, aligned our business with the needs of our customers and positioned Mercury for sustainable growth in the long-term. Our goal for the second phase is to create a fully integrated business that we can continue to profitably grow organically and scale through potential acquisitions going forward.”

“Our phase II integration, which is underway now, consists of three key initiatives,” said Aslett. “The first is facilities consolidation around our two Advanced Microelectronics Centers; the second is business process and systems standardization across the Mercury enterprise; and the third is realignment of our engineering resources around the Advanced Development Center model we introduced internally last year.”

“Mercury’s strategy, technology, capabilities and ongoing programs and platforms align well with the Defense Department’s new roles and missions,” said Aslett. “As a result, we have excellent potential to win next-generation ISR and EW business in opportunities related to priorities such as the Pacific pivot, and the upgrade of aging military platforms, as well as growth in foreign military and international sales. In addition, as a leading outsourcing partner to the primes, we are positioned to capture significant upside from defense procurement reform.”