Parsons reported record fourth-quarter revenue of $1.7 billion, reflecting a 16 percent year-over-year growth, and noted that its full-year revenue for fiscal year 2024 jumped 24 percent to $6.8 billion, up 22 percent on an organic basis.
Financial Highlights
In an earnings release published Wednesday, the Chantilly, Virginia-based defense and infrastructure engineering company said it ended the quarter with a total backlog of $8.9 billion, up 4 percent from the prior-year period, with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.0x on net bookings of $1.7 billion for the fourth quarter and $7 billion for the full year.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, for the fourth quarter was $147 million, up 14 percent from the same period the previous year. Meanwhile, adjusted EBITDA for the full year climbed 30 percent to $605 million.
The company’s Q4 cash flow from operations hit $127 million. For the full year, operating cash flow rose 28 percent to $524 million.
For the fourth quarter, Parsons posted record contract awards of 1.7 billion, up 34 percent from the prior-year period. For the full year, the company reported record contract awards of $7 billion, reflecting a 17 percent increase from the previous year.
Financial Results of Federal Solutions Segment
The company’s federal solutions segment saw its Q4 revenue increase 19 percent to $1 billion driven by 17 percent organic growth and contribution from the company’s BlackSignal acquisition.
The segment’s full-year revenue rose 33 percent to $4 billion. The company attributed the increase to organic growth of 30 percent and contributions from the SealingTech acquisition and BlackSignal transaction.
The business reported $100 million in Q4 adjusted EBITDA, up 21 percent from the prior-year period, and saw its full year adjusted EBITDA climb 43 percent to $415 million.
CEO on Acquisitions in 2024
During Wednesday’s earnings call, Carey Smith, chairwoman, president and CEO of Parsons, said the company acquired two companies in 2024, one operating in the federal solutions segment and the other in the critical infrastructure market.
“The first acquisition, BlackSignal, significantly strengthens Parsons’ positioning within offensive cyber operations and electronic warfare, while adding new capabilities in the counterspace radio frequency domain,” Smith, a 2025 Wash100 awardee and chair of Executive Mosaic’s 4×24 Group 1 Leadership, told analysts.
“The second acquisition, BCC Engineering, which we completed in the fourth quarter, strengthens our position as an infrastructure leader in program management and design engineering and positions us as the number one consultant in South Florida and doubles our presence with the Georgia Department of Transportation. This is consistent with our strategy to expand our presence in high growth regions,” the CEO added.
The Parsons chairman also mentioned the company’s recent purchase of environmental contractor TRS Group, which she said enhances the company’s “environmental remediation capabilities in both of our operating segments and serves as a force multiplier for our industry leading PFAS remediation solutions.”
Smith on M&A Program
The chief executive also touched on the company’s merger and acquisition program during the call.
“Our disciplined M&A program has been very successful and we will continue to acquire companies to enhance our capabilities, expand our customer base and drive growth and margin expansion. We have a robust candidate pipeline and anticipate acquiring two to three companies in 2025,” Smith stated.
In response to a question about the company’s M&A pipeline, she said the company has candidates in both the federal and critical infrastructure sectors.
“We continue to look at and pass on multiple companies any given month. We’re still very strict with our criteria, growing greater than 10% on the top line, greater than 10% EBITDA margin and needs to have some type of technology differentiation,” she added.
