Viasat Logs Record Orders in Fiscal Year 2023

Viasat reported record revenue in its 2023 fiscal year of $2.8 billion and $2.6 billion from continuing operations, an increase of 6% year-over-year, with a boost in aircraft in service for in-flight connectivity (IFC). 

The company sold its Link-16 Tactical Data Links (TDL) business line to L3Harris at the start of calendar year 2023, which yielded a gain of $1.7 billion. The company reported net income of $1.1 billion for the year, mainly due to the sale, and net loss from continuing operations of $218 million. 

Viasat also reported record awards in fiscal year 2023 of $3.2 billion, up from $2.6 billion in the prior year. 

The company achieved a record 2,230 commercial IFC aircraft in service — up 22% year over year. However, the record number is slightly under the 2,400 Viasat projected last year. The operator said there are still delays on new aircraft which are delaying some activations. Satellite Services revenue was $1.2 billion, up about 2% from last year’s revenue. 

“These solid financial results were achieved in the face of headwinds that included expanding ViaSat-3 program costs ahead of its delayed launch, bandwidth constraints in our fixed broadband business, government security product certification delays and supply chain bottlenecks, and delayed delivery of new Boeing and Airbus aircraft to our airline customers that slowed monetization of healthy award volumes,” CEO Mark Dankberg said in a letter to investors.

Government Systems revenue of $980 million was down about 10% from last year, but revenue from continuing operations (not including the Link-16 sale) was up slightly. Government Systems ended the year with a backlog of $493 million from continuing operations, a 24% increase from the prior year quarter continuing operations backlog. 

Dankberg commented that the U.S. government resumed issuing certifications for new cybersecurity products, which drove “significant YoY revenue growth” in the fourth quarter.

Commercial Networks, Viasat’s smallest segment which includes IFC terminals and Real-Time Earth ground service, grew revenue 20% year over year to $613 million. Backlog for this segment ended the year at $770 million — a 22% increase year-over-year. 

The operator reported financial results on Wednesday, May 17, after the recent launch of its ViaSat-3 satellite. The company confirmed solar arrays have successfully been deployed and the satellite arrived at its final orbital location earlier this week. Commercial service is expected to start mid-summer, and the operator has said the satellite will bring much-needed capacity to the IFC and broadband markets. 

In addition, Viasat said the Inmarsat acquisition is anticipated to close by the end of the month. The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) regulatory authority recently gave approval for the merger to go forward, but the merger still has a pending investigation by the European Commission (EC).