By Arasu Kannagi Basil
May 8 (Reuters) – Applied Aerospace & Defense’s revenue surged 24.8% in 2025, the private equity-backed government contractor revealed on Friday in its paperwork for a U.S. initial public offering, the latest in a flurry of defense tech listings in recent weeks.
The Huntsville, Alabama-based space and defense hardware provider reported a net loss of $17 million on revenue of $498.8 million in fiscal year ended December 31, compared with a net loss of $34.8 million on revenue of $399.8 million a year earlier.
Defense tech listings have taken center stage in the U.S. IPO market as issuers rush to seize the opportunity created by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
Aerospace parts maker Arxis, drone maker AEVEX, precision-engineered components maker Elmet Group and radio signal analyzer HawkEye 360 have gone public in New York in recent weeks.
“The U.S. IPO market is in its best shape I have seen it since the late 1990s. This is not just driven by the good reception to deals across the risk spectrum, but also strong post-IPO returns,” IPOX CEO Josef Schuster told Reuters.
Middle-market-focused buyout firm Greenbriar Equity Group, last year, combined Applied Aerospace, founded in 1954, and PCX Aerosystems, founded in 1900, to form Applied Aerospace & Defense.
The firm builds a wide range of products including fuselage, flight control surfaces, solid rocket motor cases and engine shafts for space and defense technology companies. Its customers include Anduril Industries, Boeing and GE Aerospace, according to its website.
Applied Aerospace & Defense plans to sell new shares in the offering. Roughly 83% of the firm’s revenue came from U.S. government contracts in the twelve months ended December 31.
Morgan Stanley and Jefferies are among the underwriters on the offering. Applied Aerospace & Defense will list on the NYSE under the symbol “AADX.”
(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda and Sahal Muhammed)
