MELBOURNE, Fla. -- October 29, 2026 -- L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) booked $19.3 billion in orders in the third quarter of 2026, lifting record backlog to $53.2 billion and posting a book-to-bill ratio of 3.2x. Quarterly orders equal about 82% of the $23.6 billion midpoint of the company's raised full-year revenue guidance, and backlog is about 2.3 times that midpoint, by our calculation.
CEO Sam Mehta said: "Our priority now is to convert that demand into results." The company says it will keep investing in production capacity across missiles, space, resilient communications and multi-domain sensing.
Missile Solutions book-to-bill reaches 11.8x, against 1.0x at Space & Mission Systems
The order intake is concentrated in one segment. Missile Solutions posted a book-to-bill of 11.8x, Communications & Spectrum Dominance 1.9x and Space & Mission Systems 1.0x.
L3Harris captured two seven-year undefinitized contracts to scale propulsion production, excluding escalations. One is worth $6.3 billion for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system. The other is worth $4.7 billion for the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor. Together they total $11.0 billion, equivalent to roughly 57% of the quarter's $19.3 billion in orders. The company did not say how much of that value was booked in the quarter.
Other awards:
- $250 million follow-on contract for standard-range Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) propulsion units.
- More than $500 million in VAMPIRE C-UAS orders from the United States and allies. The first units reached the U.S. Army two months after the order.
- $876 million contract modification for the U.S. Navy's Next Generation Jammer Low Band (NGJ-LB) electronic warfare system.
In October, L3Harris opened the "Arsenal of Freedom" solid rocket motor facility in Camden, Arkansas. The company describes it as one of approximately 60 new facilities being built to address rising munitions demand.
Operating margin rises 200 bps to 13.0% while segment margin stays flat at 15.9%
Revenue reached $6.1 billion, up $401 million or 7%, and up 9% on an organic basis. Space & Mission Systems and Missile Solutions both grew at double digits.
The 200 bps gain implies an operating margin of about 11.0% a year earlier. Segment operating margin did not move, so the improvement came below the segment line. The company attributes it to higher revenues and continued management of corporate expenses. The gap between segment and operating margin is 2.9 points.
Diluted GAAP EPS rose 33% to $3.28, which implies about $2.47 a year earlier. The company cites higher volumes, lower corporate expense, lower interest expense and a lower effective tax rate.
Free cash flow of $1.3 billion equals 43% of the full-year $3 billion target
Operating cash flow was $1.4 billion and capital expenditures were $179 million. Free cash flow of $1.3 billion was up 195%, which implies about $440 million a year earlier. The company maintained its fiscal 2026 free cash flow guidance of $3 billion.
L3Harris ended the quarter with $11.0 billion in total debt, $2.5 billion in cash and equivalents and $550 million in short-term investments. Net of cash and investments, debt is about $8.0 billion by our calculation.
Management raised the low end of fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $23.5 billion from $23.2 billion and left the top at $23.7 billion. That narrows the range from $500 million to $200 million. The GAAP EPS range moved to $12.25-$12.35 from $11.80-$12.00, lifting the midpoint from $11.90 to $12.30, up about 3.4%.