RTX CEO Warns Pratt & Whitney Strike Will Hurt Q2 Cash Flow

RTX CEO Chris Calio on Wednesday warned that the weeks-long strike by 3,000 Pratt & Whitney workers will have an adverse impact on the company’s cash flow during the fiscal second quarter.

RTX shares were down 0.74% at the time of writing.

Speaking at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference, Calio said the strike at Pratt’s Connecticut facility hampered the company’s ability to ship jet engines. This could lead to break-even or negative cash flow in Q2, he added.

However, this would be recoverable during the rest of the fiscal year, he said.

Pratt & Whitney, owned by RTX, experienced the first workers' strike at the Connecticut facilities in over 20 years, according to a Reuters report.

Pratt & Whitney IAM union workers ratified a new four-year collective bargaining agreement on Tuesday.

The company manufactures engines for the F-35 aircraft and nearly 70% of the turbofan engines used in European aircraft maker Airbus’ A320 Neo planes.

Calio also touched upon President Donald Trump’s “Golden Dome” missile defense shield project, calling it unique but challenging.

"I do think it's going to take a whole of industry to be able to do it and do it right, and do it on the time frame that the president and the Pentagon have outlined,” he said.

Calio also downplayed concerns of RTX, an American company, being targeted in the European market, amid ongoing trade tensions between the U.S. and the European Union.

"I think we are looked at as more than just a U.S. company, given the partnerships that we have there with some of the leading European defense firms and the success we've had in helping develop the industrial base there now," Calio said.

RTX’s stock has surged 15.04% year-to-date and 26.18% over the past 12 months.

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