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I Were CEO of Woodward for One Year… I’d Turn Turbines into Treasures
Ticker: $WWD
Sector: Aerospace & Industrial Controls
My Take: Sometimes you don’t need to build the plane—you just need to control the throttle.
What Is Woodward?
Woodward (NASDAQ: WWD) is the quiet control systems king behind your favorite noisy machines.
- They don’t build engines — they build fuel systems, actuators, and software that make the engines smarter.
- Their stuff goes into commercial jets, fighter planes, power plants, and industrial turbines.
- Basically, if it spins, combusts, or burns Jet-A — Woodward has a widget in it.
2024 revenue? ~$3.3 billion
Adjusted EBIT margin? ~15%
Free cash flow? Whispering sweet nothings to shareholders again—except this time it’s nearly $290 million in real, leftover cash they can actually use to reward investors, pay down debt, or reinvest.
So What Would I Do as CEO for 12 Months?
I’m not here to sell dreams. I’m here to squeeze operating leverage, simplify the story, and tee up the next 5 years of outperformance.
Call it a one-year power play for a company that quietly powers everything else.
Step 1: Get Ruthless with the Industrial Segment
Let’s be real: Aerospace is the moneymaker. Industrial is the side hustle that sometimes eats into margins like a bored toddler.
If I’m CEO, I:
- Segregate high-margin industrial power conversion units from low-return legacy contracts
- Exit or divest commoditized ops that drag the overall mix
- Reinforce the industrial value-add narrative around energy transition and hydrogen control systems
This isn’t just spring cleaning. It’s narrative tightening — so every analyst stops asking why we’re still messing with turbines in Turkey.
Step 2: Ride the Aerospace Afterburners
Defense and commercial aviation are both on the upcycle. This is Woodward’s moment.
As CEO, I’d:
- Go full throttle on aero content-per-aircraft—especially in narrowbody refresh programs (e.g., A320neo, 737 MAX)
- Push to embed Woodward controls deeper into high-margin military platforms
- Quietly angle for more classified propulsion systems work (repeat after me: “multi-decade revenue visibility”)
In English:
“Let GE, RTX, and Safran take the headlines — we’ll take the margin.”
Step 3: Show Some Capital Discipline Swagger
Woodward has cleaned up its balance sheet. Now’s the time to act like it.
- Launch a modest but sticky dividend to reward the loyalists
- Keep buybacks tactical, not desperate
- Tie management comp to ROIC > 12% to keep everyone honest–of course, including myself
Wall Street loves a company that quietly compounds.
Let’s continue to prove that we are one.
Step 4: Simplify the Story, Upgrade the Multiple
Analysts love clean comps. Right now, Woodward looks like a boutique component maker lost in a sea of mid-cap industrials.
Not anymore.
If I’m CEO:
- Split reporting into Aerospace Controls vs. Energy Controls, each with margin goals
- Host a dedicated Investor Day focused on content-per-aircraft, defense tailwinds, and renewable transition hooks
- Recast the narrative as “Raytheon Precision, Parker-Hannifin Consistency”
Let the multiple follow the messaging.
TL;DR: My 1-Year Mission
If I were running Woodward for just 12 months:
- Prune the low-return industrial ops
- Double down on high-value aerospace platforms
- Get Wall Street to value us on where we’re going, not just what we make
- Show discipline with capital — and make it obvious
- Tell a cleaner, sharper story that earns a better multiple
Because in this market, boring is beautiful — if you’re consistent, cash-flowing, and quietly in every plane that matters.
DISCLAIMER: This analysis of the aforementioned stock security is in no way to be construed, understood, or seen as formal, professional, or any other form of investment advice. We are simply expressing our opinions regarding a publicly traded entity.
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