Point Roberts WA, Delta BC
-- November 5, 2019 -- InvestorsHub NewsWire --
via Investorideas.com, a
leading investor news resource covering drone and unmanned aerial
vehicle (UAV) stocks releases a sector snapshot reporting on the
growth in the drone technology market from commercial to military
and how UAV leaders like Draganfly Inc.,
(CSE:
DFLY) are flying high with the drone
revolution.
How big is the opportunity?
According to PwC's study on the commercial applications of
drone technology, the emerging global market for business services
using drones is valued at over $127 bn. Experts are predicting a
sky full of drones for delivery services in the future as Amazon,
CVS and other pharmacies ramp up their programs.
Drone stocks are being watched by
astute investors, and IBD recently issued an analysis of the top drone
stocks across the industry from defense to commercial, based on IBD
Composite Ratings. According to the October article, “Drone stocks
saw a major milestone recently. In early October, UPS (NYSE: UPS) received FAA approval to operate
drones and made a delivery that marked the first revenue-generating
flight that went beyond line of sight.”
New to investors following the space
is Saskatoon based Draganfly Inc.
(CSE:
DFLY), a creator of quality, cutting-edge, unmanned
vehicle systems and software. Draganfly is making its debut in
public markets and commenced trading on the CSE today, November
5th, 2019.
According to the Company, “Direct
sales efforts are focused in Public Safety/Paramilitary (law
enforcement & security) organizations but Draganflyers are also
sold to Commercial Surveying and Commercial Mapping organizations.
Additionally, we have been asked to develop products and services
in Agriculture, Media and Broadcasting, Infrastructure, and
Industrial applications.”
Although Draganfly is new to public
markets, it has a long history in the sector. Draganfly is a
twenty year old world leader in the UAV market and brings with it a
legacy of ‘firsts’ including:
- first public safety UAV to shoot
aerial photos documenting a manned aircraft accident in an urban
area
- first UAV operated by a public
safety organization flown at night to locate and save a
life
- first UAV helicopter to be
granted a county wide U.S. FAA COA
- and recently named as a test
platform at one of the U.S. FAA’s certified test
sites
Announcing the listing, Cameron Chell, Chairman
and CEO stated “Draganfly is the world’s oldest operating drone
company and one of the early developers of the quadcopter.
Draganfly today remains a leading drone solutions innovator and
with the definitive government and industry shift to utilize North
American unmanned vehicle systems and software, Draganfly is in the
right place at the right time to establish itself as the
cornerstone North American industry player.”
From the news: With the
completion of a $7 million equity raise, the company is in a strong
working capital position to execute its business plan and is well
positioned to pursue further opportunities in the drone sector. The
Company’s products are 100% manufactured in North America, with
more than 9,000 drones sold, and with 18 patents in its portfolio
and 6 more pending in the application stage, the Company has one of
the most significant portfolios of intellectual property in the
sector and will continue to expand its intellectual property
docket.
Founded in 1998, Draganfly is
recognized as one of the first commercial multi-rotor manufacturers
and has a legacy for its innovation and superior customer service.
Draganfly has sold products and services to over 50 countries. To
date, Draganfly, has sold over 9,000 of its drones for multitudes
of applications around the world. Zenon Dragan is the founder of
Draganfly, and is a recognized leading expert on UAVs. Draganfly is
positioning itself as an integrated solutions provider to the UAV
industry.
Draganfly introduced its first
systems in 1999 and has since evolved and shaped the UAV industry.
The company’s aircrafts are widely used by public safety agencies
worldwide and were one of the first UAVs to receive a Federal
Aviation Administration (“FAA”) Certificate of Approval the fall of
2009 with the Mesa County Colorado Sheriff’s Office. In 2012, the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (“RCMP”) flew one of the company’s
drones to locate and save the life of an accident victim. The RCMP
system is on permanent display at the Smithsonian National Air and
Space Museum.
Watch the Draganfly
video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUFlpWkoDik&feature=youtu.be
Another relatively smaller player in
the mix with some of the giants in the sector is Toronto based
Drone Delivery Canada Corp. (TSXV: FLT)
(OTC: TAKOF),
a drone technology company focused on the design, development and
implementation of its proprietary logistics software platform using
drones.
The Company recently
announced that with the assistance of its sales agent,
Air Canada, DDC has entered into a commercial
agreement dated October 28, 2019 with the Edmonton Regional
Airports Authority ("ERAA"), operating Edmonton International
Airport ("EIA") and Villeneuve Airport for the purpose of
establishing the world's first airport drone delivery hub, at
Edmonton International Airport using DDC's proprietary drone
delivery platform.
DDC and ERAA will build out flight
routes from EIA using DDC's DroneSpot takeoff and landing zones
utilizing DDC's drone flight infrastructure. Leveraging ERAA's
expertise in airport operations, DDC and ERAA will implement,
promote and market DDC's drone delivery services in this controlled
airspace to a multitude of new and existing customers. All
operations will be conducted in accordance with the Canadian
Aviation Regulations and Transport Canada flight authorizations and
shall be subject to DDC obtaining all required regulatory
approvals.
"With ERAA, we will develop a drone
logistics network centered at this world-class airport as a hub for
numerous drone routes for our customers. We will continue to work
with ERAA and Transport Canada to define particular routes, and
with ERAA and Air Canada to negotiate revenue metrics and other
commercial terms, to be announced in future press releases. Given
the potential size and scope of this disruptive offering, revenue
outlook could be significant while concurrently bringing tremendous
logistical benefits to the region", said Michael Zahra, President
& CEO of DDC. "To all our stakeholders, I am pleased to
report that we will be working closely with EIA to further our
current expertise in operating at a major airport in controlled
airspace to monetize similar opportunities
globally."
The initial term of the agreement is
five years with additional successive one-year terms to follow
unless the Agreement is formally terminated.
"EIA is proud to partner with
industry leader DDC to establish Canada's first airport drone
delivery site and drastically modernize cargo logistics and supply
chain solutions. Together with our long-standing partnership with
Air Canada, we look forward to expanding DDC's network of customers
at EIA's Airport City, the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, and other
strategic partners. DDC's DroneSpot at EIA elevates intermodal
connectivity to support the growing E-Commerce, Pharmaceuticals,
Courier and Oil & Gas sectors. Thanks to our partners like NAV
Canada and Transport Canada, our airport is leading in embracing
innovation," said Myron Keehn, EIA VP of Air Service and Commercial
Development.
FLIR Systems, Inc.
(NASDAQ:
FLIR), a world leader in the design, manufacture, and
marketing of intelligent sensing technologies, recently
announced their financial results for the third quarter
ended September 30, 2019.
Third quarter 2019 revenue was
$471.2 million, 8.4% higher than third quarter 2018 revenue of
$434.9 million. Organic revenue growth was 2.5%, which excludes
revenue from acquisitions within the last twelve months. Third
quarter total bookings increased 13.0% from the third quarter of
2018 to $495.3 million, driven primarily by a contract with a prime
defense manufacturer in the Industrial Business Unit, along with
numerous smart city and industrial wins in the Commercial and
Industrial Business Units. At the end of the third quarter total
12-month current backlog stood at $668 million, an increase of
13.0% compared to the balance at the end of the third quarter 2018.
Similarly, total backlog at the end of the third quarter increased
16.7% to $810 million over the same period.
The Commercial Business Unit
revenues totaled $81.3 million, down 5.3% from the prior year.
Revenues were adversely affected by foreign exchange effects as
well as lower customer demand in the Maritime business primarily
related to macroeconomic conditions. Partially offsetting this
decline was strong growth in the Intelligent Transportation Systems
(ITS) business. Third quarter operating income of $7.6 million and
operating margin of 9.3% decreased 27.5% and 286 basis points
year-over-year, respectively. This decrease was primarily driven by
revenue declines in the Maritime and Outdoor and Tactical Systems
(OTS) businesses due to weaker end-markets impacted by geopolitical
and macroeconomic factors, as well as the impact from foreign
currency exchange and U.S. import tariffs.
Commenting on FLIR’s third quarter
results, Jim Cannon, President and Chief Executive Officer said,
“Overall, FLIR’s third quarter results were somewhat mixed. I am
pleased with the performance of the Government & Defense
Business Unit, which delivered franchise program awards, solid
organic revenue growth augmented by recent successful acquisitions,
as well as improving organic operating margins. We also continue to
build momentum in the Industrial Business Unit which generated
strong bookings in the quarter along with expanding operating
margins. However, several product lines within our Commercial
Business Unit continue to face headwinds and some key end-markets
served by the Commercial Business Unit were negatively impacted by
geopolitical and macroeconomic factors. While consolidated earnings
were in-line with our expectations and cash flow from operations
was very strong, I am not satisfied with FLIR’s third quarter
revenue performance.”
Mr. Cannon continued, “Based on our
year-to-date results and outlook for the fourth quarter, we are
slightly reducing full-year revenue expectations. However,
year-to-date total bookings are up 13.5% and total backlog is up
16.7% from a year ago, bolstered by important franchise program
wins, providing us with a long runway for growth. We remain very
confident in our long term strategy and continue to believe that
FLIR is poised to deliver profitable growth in the quarters and
years ahead.”
Amazon.com, Inc.
(NASDAQ:
AMZN), who recently
announced their financial results for third quarter
ended September 30, 2019, is becoming a potentially game changing
player in the drone and delivery market.
“We are ramping up to make our
25th holiday season the best ever for Prime customers — with
millions of products available for free one-day delivery,” said
Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos in a statement. “Customers love the
transition of Prime from two days to one day — they’ve already
ordered billions of items with free one-day delivery this year.
It’s a big investment, and it’s the right long-term decision for
customers. And although it’s counterintuitive, the fastest delivery
speeds generate the least carbon emissions because these products
ship from fulfillment centers very close to the customer — it
simply becomes impractical to use air or long ground routes. Huge
thanks to all the teams helping deliver for customers this
holiday.”
A recent news article
discussed Amazon’s evolving drone/delivery plans stating, “The
company announced earlier this year that it would start testing a
shift from Prime two-day shipping
to one-day shipping.
That’s on top of its existing services like Prime Now, which offers
same-day shipping of certain products in certain markets, and
Whole Foods grocery
delivery, among many
others spanning food and household item delivery. The company has
also been aggressively building out its contract delivery service,
Amazon Flex, and even started
exploring robotic
ground delivery.
Drones for package delivery by air are also still in the
works.”
More and more consumers and
businesses are becoming reliant on the unmanned vehicles sector for
their delivery needs and as drone software and technology continues
to improve and drop in cost, their seems to be little slowing for
this segment. Just like the UPS delivery, the opportunities for the
sector potentially are “beyond the line of
sight.”
For a list of drone stocks
and other defense stocks visit Investorideas.com
directory
https://www.investorideas.com/Companies/HomelandDefense/Stock_List.asp
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