Applied Aerospace IPO could fuel Huntsville growth
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Applied Aerospace & Defense Inc. raised $650 million in an initial public offering. Photo: Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Huntsville-based Applied Aerospace & Defense has gone public.
Why it matters: The June 3 initial public offering is positioning the company for expansion, investment and growth in the Rocket City.
Catch up quick: Applied Aerospace & Defense, now with the ticker AADX, is a specialized components manufacturer with companies including SpaceX, GE Aerospace, Boeing and Lockheed Martin among its customers.
- CEO Trip Ferguson told Axios on the day of the IPO that "today kind of marks what I call Day One of the new season. ... We have resources that we wouldn't have had before."
What they're saying: Chief growth officer Chris Rogers said the company currently has a "tremendous backlog" and is "very focused right now on execution."
- "We're really driven by the generational demand we see today, (in) both space and defense tech," Ferguson said, pointing to the company's support of major launch providers and as a leading manufacturer of defense engineering systems.
- Ferguson said the company is seeing strong demand across all of its markets — "all uncorrelated demand," he said, adding that "we expect our space market to grow at a very good pace."
Zoom in: Huntsville, where the "business has been very much centered around the space line," is a big part of the company's goals, Ferguson said.
- "We want the community to know that we plan to invest in North Alabama, that we have a lot of conviction in and around supporting not only Redstone Arsenal, Space Command, but how we can bring in new opportunities," he said.
- Rogers noted the close proximity of customers and available workforce talent, as "high-end engineering talent will drive a lot of the future of the business."
By the numbers: Applied's IPO raised $650 million, with 32.5 million shares listing at $20, per an announcement.
What we're watching: As the Department of Defense, which along with the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force are among Applied's customers, seeks to strengthen supply chains and onshore manufacturing, the company "is endeavoring to be an increasingly vocal thought leader," Rogers says.
- Serving major prime defense contractors and many neo-primes, the company is providing "a lot of case studies where we show what can be done ... and how much cost can be taken out," he said.