Stanton Sloane
Analyst · SER. Please proceed with your question
Thank you, operator. Welcome, everyone. Thank you for joining us today. Let me start off with a few comments about operations. Third quarter financials were impacted principally by two issues. Firstly, by the termination of a problem program that has been the source of persistent technical and financial issues. Cleaning up this problem has been a focus for some months and I am glad to now put it behind us. That said, I have also instituted some best practices, which I have taken from my experience in a couple of well-run aerospace companies to ensure we avoid this sort of problem in the future. Revenue decreases, the second issue for the quarter, resulted in large part from slippages in U.S. government funding to prime contractors on space programs where we are a potential supplier of frequency generation or conversion systems. On several of these programs, the prime contractors have been awarded the contracts, but they either were not yet fully funded or there have been extended negotiations regarding the technical baselines, resulting in delays of sub-contract awards to us, which of course, impact the timing of our revenues. On some of these programs, FEI is in a very strong position as the supplier of choice and it’s simply a matter of timing. I would add that the total value of new business opportunities we are pursuing continues to grow and is currently around $660 million. That is the strongest leading indicator of future revenue and profit growth. We have invested significant resources in R&D and infrastructure to position the Company to win more than our fair share of these opportunities and deliver products, and I am confident that we will do both. Overall, I sense a renewed spirit at FEI and a growing optimism about the future. I can certainly assure you that’s how I feel. I should also comment on the coronavirus issue, which I know is on everyone’s mind these days. And to give you some comfort, we have taken appropriate precautions here, including canceling business travel, screening or restricting visitors, and arranging for employees who may have been exposed to work from home. We’re also in discussions with our supply chain to ensure there are no disruptions in the flow of parts and materials. Remember as well that we have not had any involvement with operations outside the U.S., like China or Belgium for more than a year. So, at the moment, we do not foresee any impact to our operations. Now, let me turn things over to Steve Bernstein to take us through financial details for the quarter, and I will come back with questions after that.