Woodward, Inc.: Form 10-K for the period ended Sep 30, 2023

General

We are an independent designer, manufacturer, and service provider of control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets. Our innovative fluid energy, combustion control, electrical energy, and motion control systems help customers offer cleaner, more reliable, and more efficient equipment. Our customers include leading original equipment manufacturers and end users of their products. We have production and assembly facilities primarily in the United States, Europe, and Asia, and promote our products and services through our worldwide locations.

Our strategic focus is providing energy control and optimization solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets. The precise and efficient control of energy, including motion, fluid, combustion, and electrical energy, is a growing requirement in the markets we serve. Our customers look to us to optimize the efficiency, emissions, and operation of power equipment in both commercial and defense operations. Our core technologies leverage well across our markets and customer applications, enabling us to develop and integrate cost-effective and state-of-the-art fuel, combustion, fluid, actuation, and electronic systems. We focus primarily on serving original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) and equipment packagers, partnering with them to bring superior component and system solutions to their demanding applications. We also provide aftermarket repair, maintenance, replacement, and other service support for our installed products.

Woodward was established in 1870, incorporated in 1902, and is headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado. The mailing address of our world headquarters is 1081 Woodward Way, Fort Collins, Colorado 80524. Our telephone number at that location is (970) 482-5811, and our website is www.woodward.com (http://www.woodward.com). None of the information contained on our website is incorporated into this document by reference.

Markets and Principal Lines of Business

We serve the aerospace and industrial markets through our two reportable segments – Aerospace and Industrial. Our customers require technological solutions to meet their needs for performance, efficiency, and reliability, and to reduce cost of operation of their products.

Within the aerospace market, we provide systems, components, and solutions for both commercial and defense applications. Our aerospace systems and components optimize the performance of fixed wing and rotorcraft platforms in commercial, business and military aircraft, missiles, weapons and space, ground vehicles, and other equipment. Our key focus areas within this market are propulsion and combustion control solutions for turbine powered aircraft; and fluid and motion control solutions for critical aerospace and defense applications.

Within the industrial market, our key focus areas are applications and control solutions for machines that produce electricity utilizing conventional or alternative energy sources; and fluid, motion, and combustion control solutions for complex oil and gas, industrial, power generation, and transportation applications.

Products, Services and Applications

Aerospace

Our Aerospace segment designs, manufactures, and services systems and products for the management of fuel, air, combustion, and motion control. These products include fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, as well as flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft. These products are used on commercial and private aircraft and rotorcraft, as well as on military fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft, guided weapons, and other defense systems.

We have significant content on a wide variety of commercial aircraft, rotorcraft, and business jet platforms, such as the Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX, 787, Bell 429, and Gulfstream G650. We also have significant content on defense applications such as Blackhawk and Apache helicopters, F-35 and F-15 fighter jets, and guided tactical weapons.

Revenues from the Aerospace segment are generated by sales to OEMs, tier-one suppliers, and prime contractors, and through aftermarket sales of components, such as provisioning spares or replacements. We also provide aftermarket maintenance, repair and overhaul, as well as other services to commercial airlines, repair facilities, military depots, third party repair shops, and other end users.

Industrial

Our Industrial segment designs, produces, and services systems and products for the management of energy in the form of fuel, air, fluids, gases, motion, combustion, and electricity. These products include actuators, valves, pumps, fuel injection systems, solenoids, ignition systems, control systems, electronics and software, and sensors. Our products are used on industrial gas turbines (including heavy frame, aeroderivative, and small industrial gas turbines), steam turbines, compressors, and reciprocating engines (including low speed, medium speed, and high-speed engines, that operate on various fuels, including natural gas, diesel, heavy fuel oil and dual-fuel). The equipment on which our products are found is used to generate power; to extract and distribute fossil fuels; to mine other commodities; and to convert fuel to work in transportation and freight (both marine and locomotives), mobile, and industrial equipment applications.

Revenues from our Industrial segment are generated primarily by sales to OEMs and by providing aftermarket products and other related services to our OEM customers. Our Industrial segment also sells products through an independent network of distributors and, in some cases, directly to end users.

Customers

Sales to our five largest customers represented approximately 40% of our consolidated net sales for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 and 43% in fiscal year ended September 30, 2022.

The customers who account for approximately 10% or more of our consolidated net sales are the General Electric Company ("GE") and RTX Corporation. Sales to GE accounted for approximately 12% of our consolidated net sales in the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 and 11% in the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022. Accounts receivable from GE represented approximately 7% of accounts receivable at September 30, 2023 and 10% at September 30, 2022. Sales to RTX Corporation accounted for approximately 10% of our consolidated net sales in the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 and 11% in the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022. Accounts receivable from RTX Corporation totaled approximately 4% of accounts receivable at September 30, 2023, and 6% at September 30, 2022. We believe GE, RTX Corporation, and our other significant customers are creditworthy and will be able to satisfy their credit obligations to us.

The customers who account for approximately 10% or more of net sales of each of Woodward’s reportable segments are as follows:

Competitive Environment

Our products and product support services are sold worldwide into a variety of markets. In all markets, we compete on the basis of differentiated technology and design, product performance, and conformity with customer specifications. Additional factors are customer service and support, including on-time delivery and customer partnering, product quality, price, reputation, and local presence. Both of our segments operate in uniquely competitive environments.

We believe that new competitors face significant barriers to entry into many of our markets, including various government mandated certification requirements to compete in the aerospace and industrial markets in which we participate.

Aerospace

Aerospace has significant product certification requirements to meet safety regulations, which form a basis for competition as well as a barrier to entry. Technological innovation and design, product performance including increased efficiency and thrust, conformity with customer specifications, and product quality and reliability are of utmost importance in the aerospace and defense industry. In addition, on-time delivery, pricing, and joint development capabilities with customers are points of competition within this market.

We compete with numerous companies around the world that specialize in fuel and air management, combustion, electronic control, aircraft motion control, flight deck control, and thrust reverser products. Our competitors in aerospace include divisions of Eaton, Honeywell, Moog, Parker Hannifin, and RTX Corporation. In addition, some of our OEM customers are capable of developing and manufacturing similar products internally. Several competitors are also customers for our products, such as Honeywell, Parker Hannifin, and RTX Corporation.

Some of our customers are affiliated with our competitors through ownership or joint venture agreements. For example, Pratt & Whitney, one of our customers, is affiliated with RTX Corporation, one of our competitors. Similarly, GE Aerospace has a joint venture with Parker Hannifin for the supply of fuel nozzles. We also have partnered with our customers in the past, such as our strategic joint venture with one of our largest customers, GE, acting through its GE Aerospace business unit.

We believe our products offer high levels of field reliability, which provides end users with an advantage in life-cycle cost. We address competition in aftermarket service through responsiveness to our customers’ needs, providing short turnaround times, greater performance such as longer time between repairs, and maintaining a global presence. We also compete in part by establishing relationships with our customers’ engineering organizations, and by offering innovative technical and commercial solutions to meet their market requirements. Our ability to design, develop, and test an integrated system with a customer is a competitive differentiator, offering the customer savings in both resources and time.

Industrial

Industrial operates in the global markets for industrial turbines and reciprocating engines, which are used in power generation systems, transportation, and oil and gas markets. Many of these markets are subject to regulatory product and performance certifications to meet emissions and safety requirements, which form a basis for competition as well as a barrier to entry.

We compete with numerous companies that specialize in various engine, turbine, and power management products, and our OEM customers are often capable of developing and manufacturing similar products internally. Many of our customers are large global OEMs that require suppliers to support them around the world and to meet increasingly higher requirements in terms of safety, quality, delivery, reliability, and cost. Competitors include Emerson, EControls, Heinzmann GmbH & Co., Hoerbiger, Meggitt, Robert Bosch AG, and Triconix. OEM customers with internal capabilities for similar products include Caterpillar, Cummins, GE, Rolls-Royce Power Systems, Wärtsilä, and Weichai Westport.

We believe we are a market leader in providing our customers advanced technology and superior product performance at a competitive price. We focus on developing and maintaining close relationships with our OEM customers’ engineering teams. Competitive success is based on the development of innovative components and systems that are aligned with the OEMs’ technology roadmaps to achieve future reliability, emission, efficiency, and fuel flexibility targets.

For additional information about our markets and trends in our markets, please see Part II, Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Government Contracts and Regulation

Portions of our business, particularly in our Aerospace segment, are heavily regulated. We contract with numerous U.S. Government agencies and entities, including all of the branches of the U.S. military, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (“NASA”), and the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, and Transportation. We also contract with similar government authorities outside the United States, subject in all cases to applicable law.

We must comply with, and are affected by, laws and regulations relating to the formation, administration, and performance of U.S. Government contracts. These laws and regulations, among other things:

• require accurate, complete and current disclosure and certification of cost and pricing data in connection with certain contracts;
• impose specific and unique cost accounting practices that may differ from accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“U.S. GAAP”), and therefore require robust systems to reconcile;
• impose regulations that define allowable and unallowable costs and otherwise govern our right to reimbursement under certain cost-based U.S. Government contracts;
• impose manufacturing specifications and other quality standards that may be more restrictive than for non-government business activities; and
• restrict the use and dissemination of information classified for national security purposes due to the regulations of the U.S. Government and foreign governments pertaining to the export of certain products and technical data.

Sales made directly to U.S. Government agencies and entities, or indirectly through third party manufacturers utilizing Woodward parts and subassemblies, collectively represented 17% of our sales for fiscal year 2023 and 23% of our sales for fiscal year 2022.

Seasonality

We believe our sales, in total or in either reportable segment, are not subject to significant seasonal variation. However, our sales have generally been lower in the first quarter of our fiscal year as compared to the immediately preceding quarter due to fewer working days resulting from the observance of various holidays and scheduled plant shutdowns for annual maintenance.

Sales Order Backlog

For each of our reportable segments, we have elected to quantify backlog in a manner consistent with the definition of remaining performance obligations. Our remaining performance obligations by segment, excluding material rights, is shown in the table below:

Our remaining performance obligations relate to the aggregate amount of the total contract transaction price of firm orders for which the performance obligation has not yet been recognized in revenue.

Manufacturing

We operate manufacturing and assembly plants primarily in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Our products consist of mechanical, electronic, and electromechanical systems and components.

Aluminum, iron, and steel are primary raw materials used to produce our mechanical components. Other commodities, such as gold, copper and nickel, are also used in the manufacture of our products, although in much smaller quantities. We purchase various goods, including component parts and services used in production, logistics and product development processes from third parties. Generally, there are numerous sources for the raw materials and components used in our products, which we believe are sufficiently available to meet current requirements.

We maintain global strategic sourcing models to meet our global facilities' production needs while building long-term supplier relationships and efficiently managing our overall supply costs. We expect our suppliers to maintain adequate levels of quality raw materials and component parts, and to deliver such parts on a timely basis to support production of our various products. We use a variety of agreements with suppliers intended to protect our intellectual property and processes and to monitor and mitigate risks of disruption in our supply base that could cause a business disruption to our production schedules or to our customers. The risks monitored include supplier financial viability, business continuity, quality, delivery, and protection of our intellectual property and processes.

Our customers expect us to maintain adequate levels of certain finished goods and certain component parts to support our warranty commitments and sales to our aftermarket customers, and to deliver such parts on a timely basis to support our customers’ standard and customary needs. We carry certain finished goods and component parts in inventory to meet these rapid delivery requirements of our customers.

Research and Development

We finance our research and development activities primarily with our own funds. Our research and development costs include basic research, applied research, component and systems development, and concept formulation studies.

We collaborate closely with our customers as they develop their technology plans, which leads to new product concepts. We believe this collaboration allows us to develop technology, new systems, and products that are aligned with our customers’ needs and future performance, which increases the likelihood that our systems and components will be selected for inclusion in the platforms developed by our customers. Further, we believe our close collaboration with our customers during preliminary design stages allows us to provide products that deliver the component and system performance necessary to bring greater value to our customers. This preliminary work may include opportunities to test new products in order to validate concepts and demonstrate performance in challenging environments. We strive to stay ahead of the competition through our modeling, prototyping, and state of the art test capabilities.

Aerospace is focused on developing systems and components that we believe will be instrumental in helping our customers achieve their objectives of lower fuel consumption, lighter weight, more efficient performance, reduced emissions, and improved operating economics. We support our engine and airframe customers as they develop next generation designs across the commercial aviation, general aviation, civil private, and military markets. Our development efforts support technology for a wide range of:

• aerospace turbine engine applications, which include commercial, business, and military turbofan engines of various thrust classes, turboshaft engines, and turboprop engines;
• electromechanical and hydraulic actuation systems for flight deck-to-flight surface control of fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft, and turbine engine nacelles, as well as guidance for weapon systems; and
• motion control components for integration into comprehensive actuation systems.

Most technology development programs begin years before an expected entry to service, such as those for the next generation of commercial aircraft. Other development programs result in nearer-term product launches associated with new OEM offerings, product upgrades, or product replacements on existing programs.

We developed the fuel system, air management system, and actuation hardware for CFM International’s LEAP engine program. We also developed actuation system, combustion system, and oil system components for Pratt & Whitney’s Geared Turbo Fan (“GTF” or “PurePower”) engine program. We continue to support GE and CFM for improvements to the LEAP fuel system, and Collins Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney for improvements to the PurePower engine programs.

Industrial is focused on developing innovative technologies, including integrated control systems and system components, that enable our customers to cost-effectively meet mandated emissions regulations and fuel efficiency demands, allow for usage of a wider range of fuel sources, increase reliability (particularly in harsh environments), and reduce total cost of ownership. Our development efforts support technology for a wide range of:

• products that improve the quality of combustion processes and provide more precise flow of various fuels and gases in our customers’ gas turbines and bio-diesel and dual-fuel industrial reciprocating engines;
• electronic devices and software solutions that provide improved control and protection of reciprocating engines, gas turbines, steam turbines, and engine- and turbine-powered equipment; and
• advanced predictive intelligence that is integrated into many of our complex products and systems.

Human Capital

Our employees (whom we call “members”) are Woodward’s most valuable resource for current and future success. We promote an environment that ensures safety, encourages diversity and inclusion, fosters growth and self-development, and provides meaningful work. All members participate in our success through attractive and aligned total rewards programs. Notable programs we offer to our full-time members include:

• employer sponsored health insurance;
• employer 401(k) matching contributions;
• annual Woodward stock contributions for U.S. members;
• a tuition assistance program;
• training and professional development courses through our Woodward University curriculum; and
• other values-based and technical development training

Tenure of all employees averages over ten years, reflective of our positive workplace culture. Our recruiting team uses internal and external resources to recruit highly skilled and talented workers, and we encourage and reward employee referrals for open positions.

In addition to our comprehensive investment in our members’ success, we strive to maintain an inclusive environment that values and leverages the uniqueness of each member to the benefit of all our stakeholders. We view the combination of diverse perspectives and backgrounds as a powerful force for innovation. To promote diversity and our core principles, we emphasize dignity, value, and equality of all members, regardless of race, color, religion, age, gender or sexual orientation, through our actions and the workplace training programs we provide. We continually strive to harness the diversity of our global workforce by cultivating a climate that permits all our members to bring their authentic selves to work every day.

The health and safety of our members is also a top priority. We have implemented appropriate procedures and precautions to ensure the continued safety and well-being of members. We strive to comply with all federal and local workplace laws and regulations where we do business. We are always looking for ways to exceed compliance standards by utilizing continuous improvement discipline to proactively eliminate risks in the workplace.

As of October 31, 2023, we employed approximately 8,800 full-time members of which approximately 2,600 were located outside of the United States, with the majority of such members located in Germany, Poland, and China.

Member engagement drives better business results, and Woodward conducts biannual employee engagement surveys to give our members a voice in their work experience. In 2023, more than 71% of our members participated in our employee engagement surveys. These surveys help identify key engagement drivers at Woodward and areas where we have opportunity to improve. This has resulted in action plans at all levels of the organization and drives continuous conversations on the things that matter most to members and their teams.

In the United States, approximately 14% of our total full-time workforce were union members as of October 31, 2023. All union members in the United States work for our Aerospace segment. The collective bargaining agreements with our union members are generally renewed through contract renegotiation near the contract expiration dates. The MPC Employees Representative Union contract, which covered 773 members as of October 31, 2023, expires September 30, 2025. The Local Lodge 727-N International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers agreement, which covers 427 members as of October 31, 2023, expires April 23, 2024.

In Germany, approximately 12% of our total full-time workforce were union members as of October 31, 2023, all of whom work for our Industrial segment. Our Woodward L’Orange members are part of the IG Metall union in Germany. IG Metall covered 1,086 members as of October 31, 2023.

We believe we have good, collaborative relationships with our union members and the representative unions.

Almost all of our other members in the United States were at-will members as of October 31, 2023, and therefore, not subject to any type of employment contract or agreement. Our executive officers each have severance and change-in-control agreements which have been filed with the SEC.

Outside of the United States, we enter into employment contracts and agreements in those countries in which such relationships are mandatory or customary, including coordination through local works’ councils. The provisions of these agreements correspond in each case with the required or customary terms in the subject jurisdiction.

Patents, Intellectual Property, and Licensing

We own numerous patents and other intellectual property, and have licenses for the use of patents and other intellectual property owned by others, which relate to our products and their manufacture. In addition to owning a large portfolio of intellectual property, we also license intellectual property to and from third parties. For example, the U.S. Government has certain rights in our patents and other intellectual property developed in performance of certain government contracts, and it may use or authorize others to use the inventions covered by such patents for government purposes as allowed by law.

Intellectual property not covered by patents (or patent applications) includes trade secrets and other technological know-how that is not patentable or for which we have elected not to seek patent protection, including intellectual property relating to our manufacturing processes and engineering designs. Such unpatented technology, including research, development and engineering technical skills and know-how, as well as unpatented software, is important to our overall business and to the operations of each of our segments.

While our intellectual property assets taken together are important, we do not believe our business or either of our segments would be materially affected by the expiration of any particular intellectual property right or termination of any particular intellectual property patent license agreement.

As of September 30, 2023, our Consolidated Balance Sheets includes $452,363 of net intangible assets. This value represents the carrying values, net of amortization, of certain assets acquired in various business acquisitions and does not purport to represent the fair value of our acquired intellectual property as of September 30, 2023.

Environmental Matters and Climate Change

The Company is regulated by federal, state, and international environmental laws governing our use, transport and disposal of substances and control of emissions. Compliance with these existing laws has not had a material impact on our capital expenditures, earnings or global competitive position.

We use hazardous materials and/or regulated materials in our manufacturing operations. We also own, operate, have acquired, and may in the future acquire facilities that were formerly owned and operated by others that used such materials. We believe the risk that a significant release of regulated materials has occurred in the past or will occur in the future cannot be completely eliminated or prevented. From time to time, we engage in environmental remediation activities, generally in coordination with other companies, pursuant to federal and state laws. In addition, we may be exposed to other environmental costs including participation in superfund sites or other similar jurisdictional initiatives. When it is reasonably probable that we will incur remediation costs at a site, and those costs can be reasonably estimated, we accrue a liability for such future costs with a related charge against our earnings. In formulating that estimate and recognizing those costs, we do not consider amounts expected to be recovered from insurance companies, or others, until such recovery is assured. Currently, we have no sites undergoing remediation.

Our manufacturing facilities generally do not produce volumes or quantities of byproducts, including greenhouse gases, that would be considered hazardous waste or otherwise harmful to the environment. We do not expect legislation currently pending or expected in the next several years to have a significant negative impact on our operations in any of our segments.

Domestic and foreign legislative initiatives on emissions control, renewable energy, and climate change tend to favorably impact the sale of our energy control products. For example, our Industrial segment produces energy control products that help our customers maximize engine efficiency and minimize wasteful emissions, including greenhouse gases.

Available Information

Through a link on the Investor Information section of our website, www.woodward.com (http://www.woodward.com), we make available, free of charge, the following filings as soon as reasonably practicable after they are electronically filed or furnished to the SEC: our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, Proxy Statements on Schedule 14A, and any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as well as Section 16 reports of our officers and directors. The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) also maintains a website that contains our SEC filings. The address of the site is www.sec.gov (http://www.sec.gov). We provide notifications of news or announcements regarding our financial performance, including SEC filings, investor events, press and earnings releases as part of our investor relations website. We have used, and intend to continue to use, our investor relations website, as well as the following as of the date of this filing, as means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with the disclosure obligations under Regulation FD:

• X: Twitter.com/@woodward_inc
• Facebook: Facebook.com/woodwardinc
• Instagram: Instagram.com/@woodward_inc
• LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/company/woodwardinc
• YouTube: YouTube.com/user/woodwardinc

None of the information contained on our website, or the above-mentioned social media sites, is incorporated into this document by reference.

The following summarizes important factors that could individually, or together with one or more other factors, affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and/or cash flows:

Industry Risks

We operate in highly competitive industries and, if we are unable to compete effectively in one or more of our markets, our business, financial condition, and results of operations will be adversely affected.

We face intense competition from a number of established competitors in the United States and abroad, some of which are larger in size or are divisions of large, diversified companies with substantially greater financial resources. In addition, global competition continues to increase. Changes in competitive conditions, including the availability of new technologies, products and services, the introduction of new channels of distribution, changes in OEM and aftermarket pricing, and further consolidation of companies in our industries, could impact our relationships with our customers and may adversely affect future sales and margins, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Further, the markets in which we operate experience rapidly changing technologies and frequent introductions of new products and services. Our technologies and the technological expertise we have developed and maintained could become less valuable if a competitor were to develop a new technology that would allow it to match or exceed the performance of existing technologies at a lower cost. If we are unable to develop competitive technologies, future sales or earnings could be lower than expected, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

A significant portion of our revenue is concentrated among a relatively small number of customers, which makes our business more vulnerable to fluctuations in sales to these customers and changes in their financial condition.

A significant portion of our revenue is concentrated among a relatively small number of customers. We have fewer customers than many companies with similar sales volumes. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, sales to our largest 5 customers represented approximately 40% of our consolidated net sales and approximately 38% of our accounts receivable. If any of our significant customers were to change suppliers, in-source production, institute significant restructuring or cost-cutting measures, or experience financial distress, these significant customers may substantially reduce, or otherwise be unable to pay for, purchases from us. Accordingly, our consolidated net sales could decrease significantly, or we may experience difficulty collecting, or be unable to collect, amounts due and payable, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

The long sales cycle, customer evaluation process, and implementation period of our products and services may increase the costs of obtaining orders and reduce the predictability of sales cycles and our inventory requirements.

Our products and services are technologically complex and require significant capital commitments. Prospective customers generally must commit significant resources to test and evaluate our products and to install and integrate them into larger systems. Accordingly, customers often require a significant number of product presentations and demonstrations before reaching a sufficient level of confidence in the product’s performance and compatibility to commit to an order. In addition, orders expected in one quarter may shift to another quarter or be cancelled with little advance notice as a result of customers’ budgetary constraints, internal acceptance reviews, and other factors affecting the timing of customers’ purchase decisions. The difficulty in forecasting demand increases the challenge in anticipating sales cycles and our inventory requirements, which may cause us to over-produce finished goods and could result in inventory write-offs, or could cause us to under-produce finished goods. Any such over-production or under-production could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Our strategic joint venture with GE may make it more difficult to secure long-term sales in certain aerospace markets.

In January 2016, Woodward and GE, acting through its GE Aerospace business unit, consummated the formation of a strategic joint venture between Woodward and GE (the “JV”). The JV agreement does not restrict Woodward from entering into any market; however, consolidation in the aircraft engine market is increasingly prevalent, resulting in fewer engine manufacturers, and thus it may become more difficult for Woodward to secure new business with GE competitors on similar product applications both within and outside the specific markets the JV operates. Additionally, if GE fails to win new content in the market space covered by the JV, Woodward may be prevented from expanding content on future commercial aircraft engines in those markets.

Commercial, Financial, and Regulatory Risks

Suppliers may be unable to provide us with materials of sufficient quality or quantity to meet our production needs at favorable prices or at all which may adversely affect our revenue and margins.

We are dependent upon suppliers for parts and raw materials used in the manufacture of products that we sell to our customers, and our raw material costs are subject to commodity market fluctuations and have been impacted by the current inflationary environment. We have experienced shortages of certain parts and raw materials due to challenges in our supply chain, although we have made strategic investments to simplify and strengthen our supply chain. We may continue to experience shortages of parts or raw materials for the same or other reasons, such as the loss of a significant supplier, high overall demand creating shortages in parts and supplies we use, financial distress, work stoppages, natural disasters, fluctuations in commodity prices, the imposition of tariffs or other duties, or production or distribution difficulties that may affect one or more of our suppliers. In some instances, we depend upon a single source of supply, manufacturing, or logistics support or participate in commodity markets that may be subject to allocations of limited supplies by suppliers. Some of our suppliers have experienced, and others may similarly experience, financial difficulties, delivery delays or other performance problems, and, as a result, we have from time to time been, and may in the future be, unable to meet commitments to our customers and/or incur additional costs. Our customers rely on us to provide on-time delivery and have certain rights if our delivery standards are not maintained. A significant increase in our supply costs, including for raw materials that are subject to commodity price fluctuations, inflationary pressures, and/or the imposition of tariffs, or a protracted interruption of supplies for any reason, could result in the delay of one or more of our customer contracts, increase our costs, result in lost revenue or could damage our reputation and relationships with customers. In addition, quality and sourcing issues that our suppliers may experience can also adversely affect the quality and effectiveness of our products and services and may result in liability or reputational harm to us. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Our profitability may suffer if we are unable to manage our expenses in connection with sales increases, sales decreases, or if we experience change in product mix.

Some of our expenses are relatively fixed in relation to changes in sales volume and are difficult to adjust in the short term. Expenses driven by business activity other than sales level and other long-term expenditures, such as fixed manufacturing costs, capital expenditures, and research and development expenses may be difficult to reduce in a timely manner in response to a reduction in sales. In periods of rapid sales increases it may be difficult to quickly increase our production of finished goods because of our long manufacturing lead times. If a sudden, unanticipated need for raw materials, components and labor arises, we could experience difficulties in sourcing these items at a favorable cost, in sufficient quantities or at all. These factors could result in delays in fulfilling customer sales contracts, lost revenue, damage to our reputation and relationships with our customers, and an inability to meet market demand, which in turn could prevent us from taking advantage of business opportunities or responding to competitive pressures and could result in an increase in costs leading to a decrease in net earnings or even net losses. In addition, we sell products that have varying profit margins, and fluctuations in the mix of sales of our various products may affect our overall profitability.

Reductions, delays or changes in U.S. Government spending could adversely affect our business.

Sales made directly to U.S. Government agencies and entities, or indirectly through third party manufacturers, such as tier-one prime contractors, utilizing Woodward parts and subassemblies, accounted for approximately 17% of total sales in fiscal year 2023 and 23% in fiscal year 2022.

The U.S. Government participates in a wide variety of operations, including homeland defense, counterinsurgency, counterterrorism, and other defense-related operations that employ our products and services. U.S. defense spending has historically been cyclical in nature and is subject to periodic congressional authorization and appropriation actions. The level of U.S. defense spending are hard to predict and may be impacted by numerous factors outside of our control such as changes in the perceived threat environment, prevailing U.S. foreign policy, changes in security, defense, and intelligence strategies and priorities, shifts in domestic and international spending, the macroeconomic environment, tax policy, budget deficits and competing budget priorities, and the political environment and future potential government shutdowns.

Defense budgets tend to rise when perceived threats to national security increase the level of concern over the country’s safety, but we can provide no assurance that an increase in defense spending will be allocated to programs that would benefit our business. Decreases in U.S. Government defense spending, changes in the spending allocation, phase-outs or terminations of certain aerospace and defense programs on which we have content could have a material adverse effect on our sales unless they are offset by other aerospace and defense programs and opportunities. If the priorities of the U.S. Government change and/or defense spending is reduced or delayed for any of the reasons discussed above, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows may be adversely affected.

Our business may be adversely affected by risks unique to government contracting.

As a result of our contracts with the U.S. Government, we are subject to certain unique risks, including the risks set forth below:

• Our U.S. Government contracts and the U.S. Government contracts of our customers are subject to modification, curtailment or termination by the government, either for the convenience of the government or for default as a result of a failure by us or our customers to perform under the applicable contract. If any of our contracts are terminated by the U.S. Government, our backlog would be reduced, in accordance with contract terms, by the expected value of the remaining work under such contracts. In addition, we are not the prime contractor on most of our contracts for supply to the U.S. Government, and the U.S. Government could terminate a prime contract under which we are a subcontractor, irrespective of the quality of our products and services as a subcontractor.
• We must comply with procurement laws and regulations relating to the formation, administration, and performance of our U.S. Government contracts and the U.S. Government contracts of our customers. The U.S. Government may change procurement laws and regulations from time to time. A violation of U.S. Government procurement laws or regulations, a change in U.S. Government procurement laws and regulations, or a termination arising out of our default could expose us to liability, debarment, or suspension and could have an adverse effect on our ability to compete for future contracts and orders.
• We are subject to government inquiries, audits, and investigations due to our business relationships with the U.S. Government and the heavily regulated industries in which we do business. In addition, our contract costs are subject to audits by the U.S. Government. U.S. Government agencies, including the Defense Contract Audit Agency and the Defense Contract Management Agency, routinely audit government contractors and subcontractors. These agencies review our performance under contracts, cost structure, and compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and standards, as well as the adequacy of and our compliance with our internal control systems and policies. Any costs found to be misclassified or inaccurately allocated to a specific contract would be deemed non-reimbursable, and to the extent already reimbursed, would be refunded. Any inadequacies in our systems and policies could result in withholds on billed receivables, penalties, and reduced future business. Any inquiries or investigations, including those related to our contract pricing, could potentially result in civil and criminal penalties and administrative sanctions, including termination of contracts, forfeiture of profits, suspension of payments, fines, suspension, and/or debarment from participating in future business opportunities with the U.S. Government. Such actions could harm our reputation, even if such allegations are later determined to be unfounded, and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

The occurrence of one or more of these risks, some of which are out of our control, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Our debt obligations and the restrictive covenants in the agreements governing our debt could limit our ability to operate our business or pursue our business strategies, could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows, and could significantly reduce stockholder benefits from a change of control event.

As of September 30, 2023, our total debt was $721,526, including $550,000 in unsecured notes denominated in U.S. dollars issued in private placements and $169,121 of unsecured notes denominated in Euros issued in private placements. We are obligated to make interest and scheduled principal payments under the agreements governing our long-term debt, which requires us to dedicate a portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our indebtedness, and which may reduce the availability of our cash flow for other purposes, including business development efforts and mergers and acquisitions. These debt obligations could make us more vulnerable to general adverse economic and industry conditions and could limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industries in which we operate, thereby placing us at a disadvantage to our competitors that have less indebtedness. Further, we may require additional capital to repay our debt obligations when they mature, and such capital may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all.

Our existing revolving credit facility and note purchase agreements impose financial covenants on us and our subsidiaries that require us to maintain certain leverage ratios and minimum levels of consolidated net worth. Certain of these agreements require us to repay outstanding borrowings with portions of the proceeds we receive from certain sales of property or assets and specified future debt offerings.

These financial covenants place certain restrictions on our business that may affect our ability to execute our business strategy successfully or take other actions that we believe would be in the best interests of our Company. These covenants include limitations or restrictions, among other things, on our ability and the ability of our subsidiaries to:

• incur additional indebtedness;
• pay dividends or make distributions on our capital stock or certain other restricted payments or investments;
• purchase or redeem stock;
• issue stock of our subsidiaries;
• make domestic and foreign investments and extend credit;
• engage in transactions with affiliates;
• transfer and sell assets;
• effect a consolidation or merger or sell, transfer, lease, or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets; and
• create liens on our assets to secure debt.

These agreements contain certain customary events of default, including certain cross-default provisions related to other outstanding debt arrangements. Any breach of the covenants under these agreements or other event of default could cause a default under these agreements and/or a cross-default under our other debt arrangements, which could restrict our ability to borrow under our revolving credit facility. If there were an event of default under certain provisions of our debt arrangements that was not cured or waived, the holders of the defaulted debt may be able to cause all amounts outstanding with respect to the debt instrument, plus any required settlement costs, to be due and payable immediately. Our assets and available cash balances may not be sufficient to fully repay borrowings under our outstanding debt instruments if accelerated upon an event of default. If we are unable to repay, refinance, or restructure our indebtedness as required, or amend the covenants contained in these agreements, the lenders or note holders may be entitled to obtain a lien or institute foreclosure proceedings against our assets. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Additional tax expense or additional tax exposures could impact our future profitability.

We are subject to income taxes in both the United States and jurisdictions outside of the United States. Our tax liabilities are dependent upon the distribution mix of operating income among these different jurisdictions. Our tax expense includes estimates of additional tax that may be incurred and reflects various estimates, projections, and assumptions that could impact the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities. Our future operating results could be adversely affected by changes in the effective tax rate, which could be caused by, among other things:

• changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates;
• changes in our overall profitability;
• changes in rules or interpretations of existing tax laws;
• changes in U.S. federal tax legislation and tax rates;
• changes in state or non-U.S. government tax legislation and tax rates;
• changes in tax incentives;
• changes in U.S. GAAP;
• changes in the projected realization of deferred tax assets and liabilities;
• changes in management’s assessment of the amount of earnings indefinitely reinvested offshore;
• changes in management’s intentions regarding the amount of earnings reinvested offshore; and
• the results of audits and examinations of previously filed tax returns and continuing assessments of our tax exposures.

We derive a significant amount of revenue and obtain components from outside of the United States; accordingly, we are subject to the risks of doing business in other countries.

In fiscal year 2023, approximately 47% of our total sales were made to customers in jurisdictions outside of the United States (including products manufactured in the United States and sold outside the United States as well as products manufactured in international locations). We also purchase raw materials and components from suppliers outside the United States. Accordingly, our business and results of operations are subject to risks associated with doing business internationally, including:

• transportation delays and interruptions;
• political, social and economic instability and disruptions;
• natural disasters or pandemics;
• terrorism, war, and international tensions and conflicts;
• the imposition of taxes, import and export controls, duties and tariffs, embargoes, sanctions and other trade restrictions;
• fluctuations in currency exchange rates;
• different and changing regulatory environments;
• cost of compliance with increasingly complex and often conflicting regulations governing various matters worldwide;
• cost of labor, labor shortages, and other changes in labor conditions;
• the potential for nationalization of enterprises;
• potential limitations on the Company’s ability to enforce legal rights and remedies, including protection of intellectual property;
• difficulty of enforcing agreements and collecting receivables through some foreign legal systems;
• potentially adverse tax consequences, including limitations on repatriations of earnings; and
• difficulties in implementing restructuring actions on a timely basis.

The implementation of tariffs could increase the cost of certain commodities and/or limit their supply. Over the longer term, tariffs could significantly increase our costs and our ability to pass such increased costs along to our customers may be limited, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

We are subject to and must comply with U.S. laws restricting or otherwise prohibiting companies from doing business in certain countries and with certain parties, including those on exports imposed under the U.S. Export Control Laws and Sanctions Programs. These laws and regulations change from time to time and may restrict sales to other countries or parties.

We are subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) and similar anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and regulations in other jurisdictions generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to government officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business or securing an improper business advantage. We operate in many parts of the world and sell to industries that have experienced corruption to some degree. If we are found to be liable for FCPA or other similar anti-bribery law or regulatory violations, we could be subject to civil and criminal penalties or other sanctions that could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Also, a material disruption to the financial institutions with whom we transact business could have a material adverse effect on our international operations or on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Changes in the estimates of fair value of reporting units or of long-lived assets, particularly goodwill, may result in future impairment charges, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operation.

At September 30, 2023, we had $791,468 of goodwill, representing approximately 20% of our total assets. We test goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level on at least an annual basis or more frequently if an event occurs or circumstances change that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying amount. Future goodwill impairment charges may occur if estimates of fair values decrease, which would reduce future earnings. In addition, we may incur asset impairment charges if asset utilization declines, if customer demand decreases, or for a number of other reasons, which would reduce future earnings. Any such impairment charges could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

There can be no assurance that our estimates and assumptions of the fair value of our reporting units, the current economic environment, or the other inputs used in forecasting the present value of forecasted cash flows used to estimate the fair value of our reporting units will prove to be accurate projections of future performance, and any material error in our estimates and assumptions, could result in us needing to take a material impairment charge, which would have the effects discussed above.

Our inability to retain key personnel or attract and retain new qualified personnel could adversely affect our business and limit our ability to operate successfully.

Due to the specialized nature of our business, competition for technical personnel is intense and our future performance is highly dependent on our ability to hire, train, assimilate, and retain a qualified workforce. Additionally, it is important we hire and retain personnel with relevant experience in local laws, regulations, customs, traditions, and business practices to support our international operations. Achieving this objective may be difficult due to many factors, including fluctuations in global economic and industry conditions, management changes, increasing local and global competition for talent, the availability of qualified employees, challenges associated with retaining qualified employees, restructuring and alignment activities, and the attractiveness of our compensation and benefit programs.

Our financial and operating performance depends on continued access to a stable workforce and on favorable labor relations with our employees.

We rely on a highly trained workforce due to the specialized nature of our business. Further, approximately 14% of our workforce in the United States is unionized, and certain of our operations in the United States and internationally involve different employee/employer relationships and the existence of works’ councils. We periodically need to renegotiate our collective bargaining agreements, and any failure to negotiate new agreements or extensions in a timely manner could result in work stoppages or slowdowns. Any significant increases in labor costs, deterioration of employee relations, including any conflicts with works’ councils or unions, or slowdowns or work stoppages at any of our locations, whether due to employee turnover, changes in availability of qualified technical personnel, failure to have a collaborative and effective relationship with our employees, including our union employees, or an effective collective bargaining agreement in place with our union employees, or otherwise, could impair our ability to supply products or fulfill orders, and could otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, our relationships with customers, and our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. In 2023, we experienced an increase in labor costs in the countries in which we operate due to rising labor inflation. Further increases in labor costs could significantly reduce our profit margins if we are unable to flow such costs through to our customers.

Our operations and suppliers may be subject to physical and other risks that could disrupt our operations.

Our operations and sources of supply could be disrupted by unforeseen events, including fires, tornadoes, tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and other forms of severe weather in countries in which we operate or in which our suppliers are located, any of which could adversely affect our operations and financial performance. Natural disasters, public health concerns and pandemics, war, political unrest, terrorist activity, equipment failures, power outages, threats to physical security or our information security systems or other unforeseen events could result in physical damage to or other disruption of, and complete or partial closure of, one or more of our manufacturing facilities, or could cause temporary or long-term disruption in the supply of component products from some local and international suppliers, disruption in the transport of our products and significant delays in the shipment of products and the provision of services, which could in turn cause the loss of sales and customers. Existing insurance arrangements may not provide protection for all the costs that may arise from such events. Accordingly, disruption of our operations or the operations of a significant supplier could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Failure to develop, obtain, enforce, and protect intellectual property rights or third parties claims that we are infringing their intellectual property could harm our business.

Our success depends in part on our ability to develop technologies and inventions and other intellectual property, and obtain intellectual property rights and enforce such intellectual property rights worldwide. In this regard, we rely on patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret laws in the United States and in other jurisdictions where we do business, as well as license agreements, nondisclosure agreements, and confidentiality and other contractual provisions.

However, we cannot be certain we will be able to obtain patents or other intellectual property rights in our new technologies and inventions or, if we do, the scope of such rights may not be sufficiently broad to afford us any significant commercial advantage over our competitors. Further, our existing and future intellectual property rights may not provide us with competitive advantages or distinguish our products and services from those of our competitors. The technologies and inventions developed by us in the future may not be considered valuable by customers or provide us with a competitive advantage, or competitors may develop similar or identical technologies and inventions independently of us and before we do.

Effective protection of intellectual property rights is expensive and difficult to maintain, both in terms of application and maintenance costs, as well as the costs of defending and enforcing those rights. Competitors and other third parties may also challenge the ownership, validity, and/or enforceability of our patents or other intellectual property rights. Moreover, the laws of certain foreign jurisdictions do not recognize intellectual property rights or protect them to the same extent as do the laws of the United States. To the extent we do assert our intellectual property rights against third parties, we may not be successful and adequate remedies may not be available in the event of infringement or unauthorized use of our intellectual property rights, or disclosure of our trade secrets.

Third parties may in the future assert, that we have infringed, misappropriated, or otherwise violated their intellectual property rights. We cannot assure you that our current or future technologies are not, infringing or violating intellectual property rights of third parties, or will not do so in the future. In the event we face claims of infringement or misappropriation, we may face expensive litigation or indemnification obligations, be required to enter into licenses, and may be prevented from selling existing products and pursuing product development or commercialization. Even if such claims are without merit, we may be required to expend significant time and resources on the defense of such claims. If we are unable to sufficiently protect our patent and other proprietary rights or if we infringe on or misappropriate proprietary rights of others, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.

We are subject to legal proceedings, investigations, claims and/or regulatory proceedings which could have a significant impact on our business and operations.

We are currently involved or may become involved in legal, regulatory, and other proceedings. These proceedings may include, without limitation, product liability matters, intellectual property matters, contract disputes or claims, pending or threatened litigation, governmental investigations, as well as employment, tax, environmental, or other matters. These proceedings could lead to enforcement actions, adverse changes to our business practices, fines and penalties, business remedies, or the assertion of private litigation claims and/or damages that could be material, and of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. Even if the legal proceedings we face are decided in our favor, or are unfounded, we may incur material expenses and such matters may require significant management attention, and may harm our reputation with customers, employees or investors. We accrue for known individual matters if we believe it is probable that the matter will result in a loss when ultimately resolved using estimates of the most likely amount of loss. However, estimating possible losses involves significant judgment and outcomes are unpredictable, therefore, actual losses may exceed our estimates.

Our business and operations may be adversely affected by cybersecurity breaches or other information technology system or network interruptions or intrusions.

We depend heavily on the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our information technology (“IT”) and computerized systems to communicate and operate effectively. We store sensitive data including proprietary business information, intellectual property, classified information, customer information, supplier information, and confidential employee or other personal data on our servers and databases. Also, due to political uncertainty and hostile military actions, we may be subject to heightened risks of cybersecurity incidents and security breaches initiated by nation-state or affiliated actors.

From time to time, we have experienced cyberattacks on our IT infrastructure and systems. We may become the target of cyber-attacks by third parties, either directly or indirectly via our supply chain or third-party vendors, seeking unauthorized access to our data or our customers’ data or to disrupt our operations or our ability to provide services. There is also a danger of loss, misuse, theft, unavailability, or unauthorized disclosure or other processing of information or assets (including source code), or damage to or other compromise of systems, components and other IT assets, including the introduction of malicious code or other vulnerabilities by people who obtain unauthorized access to our facilities, systems or information. There are many different techniques used to obtain unauthorized access to systems and data, and such techniques continue to evolve and become more sophisticated, and the adversaries are becoming more advanced, including nation states and actors sponsored by or affiliated with nation states, which target us and other defense contractors because we protect national security information, and other actors with substantial financial and technological resources. These techniques include, but are not limited to, the use of malicious software, destructive malware, ransomware, denial of service attacks, phishing and other means of social engineering, and other means of causing system or network disruptions, obtaining unauthorized access to data or systems, or causing other cybersecurity breaches and incidents. Additionally, system and service disruptions, and cybersecurity breaches or incidents, may result from employee or contractor error, negligence, or malfeasance. Further, there have been and may continue to be cyberattacks on, and other attempts to compromise the security of, the supply chain. We may experience security breaches or incidents resulting from tools, services, or other third-party components and security vulnerabilities within, or introduced by, such tools, services, or components. Due to the rapidly evolving threat environment and other factors, we may not be successful in defending against all such attacks. Further, due to the evolving nature of these security threats and the national security aspects of much of the data we protect, the full impact of any future security breach or incident cannot be predicted.

We have implemented various measures, including technical security controls, employee training, comprehensive monitoring of our networks and systems, independent third party security assessments, maintenance of backup systems, and the use of disaster recovery sites. In addition, we have, among other things, endeavored to align our practices and procedures with recognized IT security frameworks and recommended practices, and the corroboration with local and federal agencies. Although we have implemented measures to prevent, detect, and respond to malicious activity, we cannot guarantee that such measures will be effective or sufficient to prevent a cyberattack. Nonetheless, our IT infrastructure, systems, networks, products, solutions, and services remain potentially vulnerable to numerous additional known or unknown threats.

If any of our IT infrastructure or systems are damaged, disrupted, or are impacted by security breaches or incidents, whether from cybersecurity attacks or other causes, or if we suffer any security breach or incident involving unauthorized access to, misuse, acquisition, disclosure, loss, alteration, or destruction of our data or other data we maintain or otherwise process, we could experience significant operational stoppages, disruptions, delays, and/or other detrimental impacts on our operations or investment in research, and may face increased costs, including increased costs of implementing new data protection and security measures, policies, and procedures, and costs associated with remediating and otherwise responding to the security breach or incident. Any such security breach or incident or the perception that it has occurred, also may result in diminished competitive advantages through reputational damage and increased operational costs, regulatory investigations, proceedings, and orders, litigation or other demands, indemnity obligations, damages for contract breach, fines or penalties relating to actual or alleged violation of applicable laws, regulations, or contractual obligations, incentives offered to customers or other business partners in an effort to maintain business relationships, and other costs and liabilities. Such events could result in fines, penalties, litigation or governmental investigations and proceedings, diminished competitive advantages through reputational damages, and increased operational costs, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. Further, any unauthorized disclosure or use or acquisition of our intellectual property and/or confidential business information could harm our competitive position, result in a loss of intellectual property protection, and otherwise reduce the value of our investment in research and development and other strategic initiatives or otherwise adversely affect our business.

Our insurance coverage may not be sufficient to compensate for all liability relating to any actual or potential disruption or other security breach or incident. We cannot be certain that our coverage will be adequate for liabilities actually incurred, that insurance will continue to be available to us on economically reasonable terms, or at all, or that any insurer will not deny coverage as to any future claim. The successful assertion of one or more large claims against us that exceed available insurance coverage, or the occurrence of changes in our insurance policies, including premium increases or the imposition of large deductible or co-insurance requirements, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our financial condition, operating results, and reputation.

Data privacy, data protection, and information security may require significant resources and present certain risks.

We collect, store, and otherwise process certain confidential or sensitive data, including personal data and other information that is subject to laws, regulations, customer-imposed controls, or other actual or asserted obligations. The laws, regulations, standards, and other actual and asserted obligations relating to privacy and information security to which we may be subject, in the U.S. and globally, are evolving. For example, in the European Union, the General Data Protection Regulation imposes stringent requirements applicable to processing personal data and provides for substantial penalties for noncompliance, and in the U.S., California and numerous other states have adopted comprehensive privacy laws, with other states considering such laws. Many jurisdictions around the world have passed or are considering laws and regulations relating to privacy, data protection, and cybersecurity, including laws that impose cross-border data transfer restrictions and require certain personal data to be maintained on local servers.

Any actual or perceived failure to comply with laws, regulations, or contractual or other actual or asserted obligations to which we are or are alleged to be subject relating to privacy, data protection, or cybersecurity could result in claims, litigation, and regulatory investigations and other proceedings, as well as damage to our reputation. These could result in substantial costs, diversion of resources, fines, penalties, and other damages and liabilities, and harm to our customer relationships, our market position, and our ability to attract new customer engagements. Any of these could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows, potentially in a material manner.

Increasing emission standards that drive certain product sales may be eased or delayed, which could reduce our competitive advantage.

We sell components and systems that have been designed to meet strict emission standards, including standards that have not yet been implemented but are expected to be implemented soon. If these emission standards are eased, developed products may become unnecessary and/or our future sales could be lower as potential customers select alternative products or delay adoption of our products, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Prices for fossil fuels may increase significantly and disproportionately to other sources of fuels used for power generation, which could reduce our sales and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Commercial producers of electricity use many of our components and systems, most predominately in their power plants that use natural gas as their fuel source. Commercial producers of electricity are often in a position to manage the use of different power plant facilities and make decisions based on operating costs. Compared to other sources of fuels used for power generation, natural gas prices have increased slower than fuel oil, but about the same as coal. This increase in natural gas prices and any future increases, whether in absolute dollars or relative to other fuel costs such as oil, could impact the sales mix of our components and systems, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Long-term reduced commodity prices for oil, natural gas, and other minerals may depress the markets for certain of our products and services, particularly those from our Industrial segment.

Many of our Industrial segment OEM and aftermarket customers and our Aerospace segment rotorcraft product lines’ customers provide goods and services that support various industrial extraction activities, including mining, oil and gas exploration and extraction, and transportation of raw materials from extraction sites to refineries and/or processing facilities. Long-term lower prices for commodities such as oil, natural gas, gold, tin, and various other minerals could reduce exploration activities and place downward pressure on demand for our goods and services that support exploration and extraction activities.

Business Risks

Our product development activities may not be successful, may be more costly than anticipated, or we may not be able to produce newly developed products at a cost that meets the anticipated product cost structure.

Our business involves a significant level of product development activities, generally in connection with our customers’ development activities. Industry standards, customer expectations, or other products may emerge that could render one or more of our products or services less desirable or obsolete. Additionally, our competitors may develop new technology, or more efficient ways to produce their existing products that could cause our existing products or services to become less desirable or obsolete. Maintaining our market position requires continued investment in research and development. During an economic downturn or a subsequent recovery, we may need to maintain our investment in research and development, which may limit our ability to reduce these expenses in proportion to a sales shortfall.

In addition, increased investments in research and development may divert resources from other potential investments in our business, such as acquisitions or investments in our facilities, processes, and operations. If these activities are not as successful as currently anticipated, are not completed on a timely basis, or are more costly than currently anticipated, or if we are not able to produce newly developed products at a cost that meets the anticipated product cost structure, then our future sales, margins and/or earnings could be lower than expected, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Product liability claims, product recalls or other liabilities associated with the products and services we provide may force us to pay substantial damage awards and other expenses.

The manufacture and sale of our products and the services we provide expose us to risks of product and other tort claims, and any resulting liability. We currently have and have had in the past product liability claims relating to our products, and we will likely be subject to additional product liability claims in the future for past, current, and future products. Some of these claims may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows. We also provide certain services to our customers and are subject to claims with respect to the services provided. In providing such services, we may rely on subcontractors to perform all or a portion of the contracted services. It is possible that we could be liable to our customers for work performed by a subcontractor.

Regardless of the outcome, product liability claims can be expensive to defend, can divert the attention of management and other personnel for significant periods of time, and can cause reputational damage. While we believe that we have appropriate insurance coverage available to us related to any such claims, our insurance may not cover all liabilities or be available in the future at a cost acceptable to us. An unsuccessful result in connection with a product liability claim, where the liabilities are not covered by insurance or for which indemnification or other recovery is not available, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Acquisitions, joint ventures, divestitures, and other transactions we enter into could fail to achieve strategic objectives, disrupt our ongoing operations, result in operating difficulties, harm our business, and negatively impact our results of operations.

As part of our business strategy, we have pursued, and expect to pursue acquisitions of other companies and assets. The identification, evaluation, and negotiation of potential acquisitions and other strategic transactions may divert the attention of management and entail various expenses, whether or not such transactions are ultimately completed. If we are able to complete a transaction. The success of these transactions depends on, among other things, our ability to integrate these businesses into our operations and realize the planned synergies. Integration of acquired operations may take longer, or be more costly or disruptive to our business, than originally anticipated. The integration of these acquisitions may require significant attention from our management, and the diversion of management’s attention and resources could have a material adverse effect on our ability to manage our business. We may also incur costs and divert management attention to acquisitions that are never consummated.

Difficulties in the integration of the acquired business may include consolidating the operations, processes and systems of the acquired business, retaining and motivating key management and employees, and integrating existing business relationships with suppliers and customers. Even if integration is successful, the financial and operational results may differ materially from our assumptions and forecasts due to unforeseen expenses, delays, conditions, and liabilities. Evolving regulations such as changes in tax, trade, environmental, labor, safety, payroll, or pension policies could increase the expected costs of acquisitions, and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates may impact the agreed upon purchase price. In addition, we may incur unanticipated costs or expenses following an acquisition, including post-closing asset impairment charges, expenses associated with eliminating duplicate facilities, and other liabilities.

Many of these factors are outside of our control and any one of them could result in increased costs, decreases in the amount of expected revenues, and diversion of management’s time and attention. Failure to successfully implement our acquisition strategy, including successfully integrating acquired businesses, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

We also may make strategic divestitures from time to time. These types of transactions may result in continued financial involvement in the divested businesses, such as through guarantees or other financial arrangements, following the transaction. Nonperformance by those divested businesses could affect our future financial results through additional payment obligations, higher costs or asset write-downs, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Our restructuring activities may increase our expenses and reduce our profitability, and may not have the intended effects.

From time to time, we have implemented restructuring and other actions designed to reduce structural costs, improve operational efficiency, and position the Company for long-term profitable growth. Historically, our restructuring activities have included workforce management and other restructuring charges related to acquired businesses. Due to cost reduction measures or changes in the industries and markets in which we compete, we may decide to implement restructuring or alignment activities in the future, such as closing plants, moving production lines, or making additions, reductions, or other changes to our management or workforce. These restructuring and/or alignment activities generally result in charges and expenditures that may adversely affect our financial results for one or more periods.

Restructuring and/or alignment activities can also create unanticipated consequences, such as instability or distraction among our workforce, and we cannot be sure that any restructuring or alignment efforts that we undertake will be successful. A variety of risks could cause us not to realize expected cost savings, including, among others, higher than expected severance costs related to staff reductions, higher than expected costs of closing plants, higher costs to hire new employees or delays or difficulty hiring the employees needed, higher than expected operating costs associated with moving production lines, delays in the anticipated timing of activities related to our cost-saving plan, and other unexpected costs associated with operating the business.

If we are unable to structure our operations in the light of evolving market conditions, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Our manufacturing activities may result in future environmental costs or liabilities.

We use hazardous materials and/or regulated materials in our manufacturing operations. We also own, operate, have acquired, and may in the future acquire facilities that were formerly owned and operated by others that used such materials. The risk that a significant release of regulated materials has occurred in the past or will occur in the future cannot be completely eliminated or prevented. As a result, we are subject to a substantial number of costly regulations and we must conform our operations to applicable regulatory requirements in all countries in which we operate. To the best of our knowledge, we have been and should be at all times, in complete compliance with all environmental requirements; however, we cannot be certain that we will not incur additional material costs or liabilities as a result of complying with these requirements.

In addition, we may be subject to other environmental remediation costs such as participation in superfund sites or other similar jurisdictional initiatives. As a result, we may incur material costs or liabilities or be required to undertake future environmental remediation activities that could damage our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

Failure of our production lines, or those of our subcontractors, to meet required certification standards could disrupt production.

Our existing production lines, as well as the production lines of our subcontractors, are sometimes required to pass varying levels of qualification with certain of our customers. Some of our customers require that our production lines pass their specific qualification standards and that we, and any subcontractors that we may use, be registered under or certified to certain U.S. or international quality standards. We may be unable to obtain, maintain, or we may experience delays in obtaining, a certification or registration to a required quality standard. A delay in obtaining, or the failure to obtain a necessary quality certification or registration could result in significant out-of-sequence work and increased production costs, as well as delayed deliveries to customers, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.

The following is a summary of our principal facilities as of September 30, 2023:

In addition to the principal plants listed above, we own or lease other facilities used primarily for sales, service activities, assembly, and/or engineering activities in Australia, Brazil, China, India, Japan, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Germany, and the United States.

Our principal plants are suitable and adequate for the manufacturing and other activities performed at those plants, and we believe our utilization levels are generally high.

Woodward is currently involved in pending or threatened litigation or other legal proceedings, investigations, claims and/or regulatory proceedings arising in the normal course of business, including, among others, those relating to product liability claims, employment matters, worker’s compensation claims, contractual disputes, product warranty claims, and alleged violations of various laws and regulations. Woodward accrues for known individual matters using estimates of the most likely amount of loss where it believes that it is probable the matter will result in a loss when ultimately resolved and such loss is reasonably estimable.

While the outcome of pending claims, legal and regulatory proceedings, and investigations cannot be predicted with certainty, management believes that any liabilities that may result from these claims, proceedings and investigations will not have a material effect on Woodward's liquidity, financial condition, or results of operations.

This Management’s Discussion and Analysis should be read together with the Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes included in this report. Dollar and number of share amounts contained in this discussion and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are in thousands, except per share amounts. For a discussion of the 2022 Results of Operations, including a discussion of the financial results for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022 compared to the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021, refer to Part I, Item 7 of our Form 10-K filed with the SEC on November 18, 2022.

OVERVIEW

Woodward enhances the global quality of life and sustainability by optimizing energy use through improved efficiency and lower emissions. We are an independent designer, manufacturer, and service provider of control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets. We design, produce, and service reliable, efficient, low-emission, and high-performance energy control products for diverse applications in challenging environments. We have production and assembly facilities primarily in the United States, Europe, and Asia, and promote our products and services through our worldwide locations.

Our strategic focus is providing energy control and optimization solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets. The precise and efficient control of energy, including motion, fluid, combustion, and electrical energy, is a growing requirement in the markets we serve, and we have developed and are executing on strategies to leverage the macro trends of reducing greenhouse gases, commercializing space, and accelerating the digital age. To facilitate a cleaner world, we are partnering with our customers to enable their equipment to be more efficient, capable of utilizing clean burning fuels, advancing fuel cells, and the integration of renewable power in both commercial and defense operations. Our core technologies can be leveraged across our markets and customer applications, enabling us to develop and integrate cost-effective and state-of-the-art fuel, combustion, fluid, actuation, and electronic systems. We focus primarily on serving OEMs and equipment packagers, partnering with them to bring superior component and system solutions to their demanding applications. We also provide aftermarket repair, maintenance, replacement, and other service support for our installed products.

Our components and integrated systems optimize performance of commercial aircraft, defense aircraft, military ground vehicles and other equipment, gas and steam turbines, industrial diesel, gas, bio-diesel and dual-fuel reciprocating engines, and electrical power systems. Our innovative motion, fluid, combustion, and electrical energy control systems help our customers offer more cost-effective, cleaner, and more reliable equipment.

Global Business Conditions

During fiscal year 2023, we experienced strong end market demand for our products and services across aerospace and industrial markets; however, our financial performance continued to be adversely affected by macroeconomic issues, including global supply chain disruptions, rising labor costs, and material inflation. We remain intent on actively implementing strategic initiatives focused on increasing profitability through operational excellence, talent development, and simplifying and strengthening our supply chain. Our output is increasing, and we are seeing efficiency gains as our new members continue to gain additional experience and become more proficient in their jobs, and we continue to benefit from a more stable workforce. The strategic investments we made to simplify and strengthen our supply chain have improved stability and performance of our supply base; however, the environment remains challenging and we continue to actively manage and problem solve with our suppliers. We also continue to assess the environment and are executing multiple work streams to capture prices that better reflect the value we deliver.

We are unable to predict the full extent to which macroeconomic factors will continue to adversely impact our business, including our operational performance, results of operations, cash flows, financial position, and the achievement of our strategic objectives. Such uncertainty may affect our ability to accurately predict our future performance and forecast our financial results.

BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND TRENDS

We serve the aerospace and industrial markets.

Aerospace Markets

Our aerospace products and systems are primarily used to provide propulsion, actuation and motion control in both commercial and defense fixed-wing aircraft, rotorcraft, guided weapons, and other defense systems.

Commercial and Civil Aircraft – In the commercial aerospace markets, global air traffic continued to grow in fiscal year 2023 as domestic passenger traffic surpassed pre-pandemic years and international travel has largely recovered. Aircraft operators are taking delivery of next generation aircraft models to meet the growing demand for passenger air travel, the need to replace aging aircraft, and the demand for more fuel efficient and lower emission aircraft. The delivery of the newest generation of aircraft is expected to favor our product offerings because we have more content on those aircraft. We expect production levels to continue to grow due to strong OEM order backlogs for the new aircraft models and pent-up demand. Demand in the narrowbody aviation market improved in fiscal year 2023 compared to recent years due to increasing production rates on the A320neo and the 737 MAX. We expect narrowbody deliveries to further improve in fiscal year 2024 due to backlog associated with single aisle programs and planned production ramps.

We have content on the Airbus A220, A320neo, A330neo, Bell 429, Boeing 737 MAX, 777, 787, and Comac C919. We have been awarded content on the 777-9 and a variety of business jet platforms, among others. We continue to explore opportunities on new engine and aircraft programs that are under consideration or have been recently announced.

The Boeing 737 MAX has returned to service in every jurisdiction. As the aircraft’s return to service progresses, we anticipate a large majority of the deliveries missed in fiscal year 2019 through 2022 will be fulfilled in future periods. With the full return to service of the 737 MAX aircraft and increasing deliveries, initial provisioning sales related to aircraft and the CFM LEAP engine have accelerated. We anticipate further recovery of OEM 737 MAX sales in fiscal year 2024.

Defense – In recent years, the defense industry has been strong as budgetary allocations have generally increased since 2016. Global conflicts are leading to higher global defense budgets. The U.S. National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2023 resulted in higher levels of funding for procurement, research and development, and maintenance, and we believe budget increases in recent years will support growth in fiscal year 2024, with the exception of our guided tactical weapons programs. We expect defense research and development, as well as procurement, to increase, which is beneficial for future opportunities in defense markets. Our involvement with a wide variety of defense programs in fixed-wing aircraft, rotorcraft, and weapons systems has provided relative stability for our defense market sales, as some newer programs increase (e.g., F-35 Lightning II and T-7A Trainer), and some legacy programs decrease (e.g., F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and V-22 Osprey). Other programs are relatively steady (e.g., KC-46A Tanker, UH-60 Black Hawk and A-64 Apache helicopter programs) and some legacy programs, such as the F-15, should maintain or potentially increase production. Guided tactical weapons programs for which we have sales include the Joint Direct Attack Munition (“JDAM”), Small Diameter Bomb (“SDB”), and AIM-9X guided tactical weapon systems. Following multiple years of decline from very strong demand levels, we expect overall demand to flatten for these weapons programs, with production of some programs decreasing and other programs increasing.

Aftermarket – Our commercial aftermarket business increased significantly in fiscal year 2023, as global air traffic continued to grow and OEM production rates have increased. In addition, our products have been selected for new aerospace platforms and our content has increased across existing platforms. With the entry into service of the new single aisle aircraft (Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320neo), we have seen a significant increase in initial provisioning sales to the operators of these new aircraft. As aircraft production levels increase to accommodate rising passenger demand and to mitigate higher operating costs driven largely by higher fuel costs on older and less fuel-efficient aircraft, we expect airlines will retire older generation aircraft as they reach certain age thresholds (typically around twenty-five years on average). However, in the past few years, aircraft retirements have decreased because passenger demand has outpaced deliveries of next generation aircraft, forcing older generation legacy aircraft to remain in service longer than anticipated. This has led to increased demand for repairs and spare parts for older engine programs remaining in service, consistent with air traffic growth. This dynamic applies to commercial aftermarket related to repairs and spare parts for mature legacy programs with large in-service fleets, such as the Airbus A320 and the Boeing 777.

Our defense aftermarket sales increased during fiscal year 2023 due to increased defense budgets resulting in operations and maintenance upgrades. Global conflicts and growing international demand for various other military programs continue to drive demand for operations of defense aircraft, including fighter jets, transports and both utility and attack rotorcraft, which are all supported by our products and systems. Although we expect variability, which is generally attributable to the cycling of various maintenance and upgrade programs, as well as actual usage, our outlook for the defense aftermarket is strong. This is due primarily to growing fleets, the service lives of existing military programs being extended and increased demand for repairs and spare parts for older military aircraft programs remaining in service.

Industrial Markets

Our industrial products are used worldwide in various types of turbine and reciprocating engine-powered equipment, including electric power generation and distribution systems, ships, locomotives, compressors, pumps, and other mobile and industrial machines.

Power Generation – The demand for power generation, which consists mainly of heavy frame, aero derivative, and steam industrial gas turbines, increased in fiscal year 2023 due to increased demand from power generation and process industries, particularly in Asia, and more broadly in support of fixed generation capacity to backstop the growing renewable energy installed base. Start reliability, fuel flexibility, safety, and part-load efficiency are all key drivers of the power generation market as the conversion from coal to natural gas usage continues, and we believe Woodward continues to be well positioned to meet these market needs on the existing and next generation turbines. We project continued growth as demand for electricity is met through a balance of renewable power sources and newer industrial gas turbines for which Woodward has been awarded increased content.

Transportation – Woodward’s key markets for transportation include compressed natural gas and liquified natural gas trucks in Asia, mining, and commercial and defense marine markets. During fiscal year 2023, demand increased across all key markets. Chinese heavy duty truck output increased significantly during the last three quarters of fiscal year 2023, as did the portion that is natural gas powered. The natural gas-powered production rate has been improving since the first quarter of fiscal year 2023, but future demand remains uncertain. Further, demand in the global marine market increased due to increased ship build rates and higher ship utilization, driving current and future aftermarket activity. Both commercial and defense marine customers continue to launch additional projects to support new programs or modernize fleets, including incorporating alternative fuels capability, which should drive expanded OEM and service opportunities, as multi-fuel engines contain greater Woodward content.

Oil and Gas – Due to increased demand for fuel flexibility as well as natural gas price variability and global supply chain disruptions, power plant operations have transitioned to higher dual fuel use, thereby increasing the demand for our liquid fuel system and related products. During fiscal year 2023, we experienced increased demand due to increased global rig counts and an increase in global large natural gas infrastructure. We anticipate strong demand in fiscal year 2024 for new highspeed engines and new marine engines. We expect market share gains by our customers and increased scope on the next generation reciprocating engines as energy policies in some countries encourage the use of compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, and other alternative fuels over carbon-rich petroleum fuels, which we expect will drive increased demand for our alternative fuel clean engine control technologies.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Financial Highlights

Adjusted net earnings, adjusted earnings per share, adjusted effective tax rate, EBIT, adjusted EBIT, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow, and adjusted free cash flow are non-U.S. GAAP financial measures. A description of these measures as well as a reconciliation of these non-U.S. GAAP financial measures to the closest U.S. GAAP financial measures can be found under the caption “Non-U.S. GAAP Measures” in this Item 7 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations.

Liquidity Highlights

Net cash provided by operating activities for fiscal year 2023 was $308,543, compared to $193,638 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in net cash provided by operating activities in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 is primarily attributable to increased earnings, partially offset by working capital increases, and the timing of certain tax payments.

For fiscal year 2023, free cash flow was $232,043, compared to $140,770 for fiscal year 2022. We define free cash flow as net cash flows from operating activities less payments for property, plant and equipment. Adjusted free cash flow, which we define as free cash flow, plus the payments for costs related to business development activities, restructuring activities, and certain non-restructuring separation costs, was $238,227, compared to $144,257 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow for fiscal year 2023 as compared to the prior fiscal year was primarily due to increased earnings, partially offset by higher capital expenditures.

At September 30, 2023, we held $137,447 in cash and cash equivalents and had total outstanding debt of $721,526 with additional borrowing availability of $991,044, net of outstanding letters of credit, under our revolving credit agreement. At September 30, 2023, we also had additional borrowing capacity of $25,143 under various foreign lines of credit and foreign overdraft facilities.

Consolidated Statements of Earnings and Other Selected Financial Data

The following table sets forth consolidated statements of earnings data as a percentage of net sales for each period indicated:

Other select financial data:

2023 RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

2023 Net Sales Compared to 2022

Consolidated net sales for fiscal year 2023 increased by $531,776, or 22.3%, compared to fiscal year 2022.

Details of the changes in consolidated net sales are as follows:

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In the Aerospace segment, the increase in net sales for fiscal year 2023 as compared to fiscal year 2022 was primarily attributable to a significant increase in commercial OEM and aftermarket sales driven by higher OEM production rates, continued recovery in passenger traffic, increasing aircraft utilization, and price realization, partially offset by lower defense OEM sales primarily driven by reduced demand for guided weapons.

In the Industrial segment, the increase in net sales for fiscal year 2023 as compared to fiscal year 2022 was primarily attributable to volume increases across all markets and price realization. Industrial sales benefited from significant operational improvements from our strategic initiatives including increased output and other efficiency gains as well as increased demand for on-highway natural gas truck production in China in the second half of fiscal year 2023.

2023 Costs and Expenses Compared to 2022

Cost of goods sold increased by $379,498 to $2,236,983 for fiscal year 2023, from $1,857,485 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in cost of goods sold on an absolute basis in fiscal year 2023 compared to the prior fiscal year was primarily due to higher sales volume and net inflationary impacts on material and labor costs.

Gross margin (as measured by net sales less cost of goods sold, divided by net sales) was 23.2% for fiscal year 2023, compared to 22.0% for fiscal year 2022. The increase in gross margin for fiscal year 2023 is primarily attributable to higher sales volume and price realization, partially offset by net inflationary impacts on material and labor costs, as well as non-recurring, specific charges for excess and obsolete inventory and product rationalization.

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $66,687, or 32.8%, to $269,692 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $203,005 for fiscal year 2022. Selling, general, and administrative expenses as a percentage of net sales increased to 9.3% for fiscal year 2023, compared to 8.5% for fiscal year 2022. The increase in selling, general, and administrative expenses, both in dollars and as a percentage of sales, for fiscal year 2023 as compared to prior fiscal year is primarily due to increased annual variable incentive compensation costs, increased expenses relating to inflation, increased headcount, and expenses relating to our deferred compensation program, as well as a non-recurring charge related to customer collections, and a product rationalization charge related to the write-off of assets. Such charges did not occur in the prior fiscal year.

Research and development costs increased by $12,313, or 10.3%, to $132,095 for fiscal year 2023, as compared to $119,782 for fiscal year 2022. Research and development costs as a percentage of net sales decreased to 4.5% for fiscal year 2023, as compared to 5.0% for fiscal year 2022. The increase in research and development costs in dollars for fiscal year 2022 as compared to the prior fiscal year is primarily due to variability in the timing of projects and expenses. The decrease in research and development costs as a percentage of net sales for fiscal year 2023 as compared to the prior fiscal year is primarily due to net sales increases in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022. Our research and development activities extend across both our operating segments and almost all of our customer base, and we anticipate ongoing variability in research and development costs due to the timing of customer business needs on current and future programs.

Restructuring activities of $5,172 were recognized in fiscal year 2023, primarily related to workforce management to implement a streamlined Aerospace and Industrial organizational and leadership structure designed to enhance the sales experience for customers, simplify operations, and increase profitability through improved execution. In fiscal year 2022, restructuring activities resulted in a benefit of $3,420, due primarily to a reversal of unpaid accrued amounts for restructuring activities as a result of changes in business conditions, including plans to insource work from suppliers, and to manage workforce levels through attrition.

Interest expense increased by $13,353, or 38.7%, to $47,898, for fiscal year 2023, compared to $34,545 for fiscal year 2022. Interest expense as a percentage of net sales increased to 1.6% for fiscal year 2023, as compared to 1.4% for fiscal year 2022. Interest expense increased for fiscal year 2023 as compared to fiscal year 2022 primarily due to increased borrowings and interest rates on our revolving credit agreement.

Other income, net was $50,291 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $26,691 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in other income in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 was primarily attributable to increased earnings in the JV and a gain on investments in our deferred compensation program, whereas a loss on such investments was recognized in the prior fiscal year.

Income taxes were provided at an effective rate on earnings before income taxes of 15.7% for fiscal year 2023, compared to 14.1% for fiscal year 2022. The increase in the effective tax rate for fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 is primarily attributable to projected future withholding taxes on unremitted earnings recorded in fiscal year 2023, partially offset by a larger stock-based compensation tax benefit and larger favorable return to provision adjustments in fiscal year 2023.

Segment Results

The following table presents sales by segment:

The following table presents earnings by segment and reconciles segment earnings to consolidated net earnings:

The following table presents segment earnings as a percent of segment net sales:

2023 Segment Results Compared to 2022

Aerospace

Aerospace segment net sales increased by $248,781, or 16.4% to $1,768,103 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $1,519,322 for fiscal year 2022. Segment net sales increased for fiscal year 2023 as compared to fiscal year 2022, primarily due to higher commercial OEM and aftermarket sales as well as price realization, partially offset by the reduced demand for guided weapons.

Defense OEM sales decreased in fiscal year 2023 compared to prior fiscal year, primarily driven by the reduced demand for guided weapons. However, with the exception of guided weapons, defense OEM demand remained stable at elevated levels. Our defense aftermarket sales increased in fiscal year 2023 compared to the prior fiscal year, primarily driven by increased defense budgets resulting in operations and maintenance upgrades.

Aerospace segment earnings increased by $59,171, or 25.6%, to $290,104 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $230,933 for fiscal year 2022.

The net increase in Aerospace segment earnings for fiscal year 2023 was due to the following:

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Aerospace segment earnings as a percentage of segment net sales were 16.4% for fiscal year 2023 and 15.2% for fiscal year 2022.

Industrial

Industrial segment net sales increased by $282,995, or 32.8%, to $1,146,463 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $863,468 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in Industrial segment net sales in fiscal year 2023 as compared to the prior fiscal year was primarily attributable to volume increases across all markets. Industrial sales in the fiscal year benefited from significant operational improvements including increased output and other efficiency gains as well as significantly increased demand for on-highway natural gas truck production in China in the second half of 2023.

Industrial segment earnings increased by $78,834, or 95.2%, to $161,622 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $82,788 for fiscal year 2022.

The net increase in Industrial segment earnings for fiscal year 2023 was due to the following:

Industrial segment earnings as a percentage of segment net sales were 14.1% for fiscal year 2023, compared to 9.6% for fiscal year 2022.

Industrial earnings in the fiscal year benefited from significant operational improvements including increased output and other efficiency gains as well as significantly increased demand for on-highway natural gas truck production in China in the second half of 2023.

Nonsegment

Nonsegment expenses increased by $49,719 to $130,811 for fiscal year 2023, compared to $81,092 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in nonsegment expenses is primarily due to the increase in the annual variable incentive compensation costs as compared to the prior fiscal year. Further, nonsegment expenses for fiscal year 2023 included a specific charge for excess and obsolete inventory of $11,995, a product rationalization charge of $10,504, a restructuring charge of $5,172, a non-recurring charge related to customer collections of $4,997, and certain non-restructuring separation costs of $2,208. Excluding these charges from 2023, nonsegment expenses increased by $14,843 in fiscal year 2023 compared to the prior fiscal year.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Historically, we have satisfied our working capital needs, as well as capital expenditures, product development and other liquidity requirements associated with our operations, with cash flow provided by operating activities and borrowings under our credit facilities. We have also issued debt to supplement our cash needs, repay our other indebtedness, or finance our acquisitions. We expect that cash generated from our operating activities, together with borrowings under our revolving credit facility and other borrowing capacity, will be sufficient to fund our continuing operating needs for the next 12 months and the foreseeable future.

Our aggregate cash and cash equivalents were $137,447 at September 30, 2023 and $107,844 at September 30, 2022, and our working capital was $852,256 at September 30, 2023 and $772,856 at September 30, 2022. Of the cash and cash equivalents held at September 30, 2023, $132,069 was held by our foreign locations. We are not presently aware of any significant restrictions on the repatriation of these funds, although a portion is considered indefinitely reinvested in certain foreign subsidiaries. If these funds were needed to fund our operations or satisfy obligations in the United States, then they could be repatriated and their repatriation into the United States may cause us to incur additional U.S. income taxes or foreign withholding taxes. Any additional U.S. taxes could be offset, in part or in whole, by foreign tax credits. The amount of such taxes and application of tax credits would be dependent on the income tax laws and other circumstances at the time these amounts are repatriated. Based on these variables, it is impractical to determine the income tax liability that might be incurred if these funds were to be repatriated.

Our revolving credit facility, as amended, provides a borrowing capacity of up to $1,000,000 with the option to increase total available borrowings to up to $1,500,000, subject to lenders’ participation. We can borrow against our revolving credit facility as long as we are in compliance with all of our debt covenants. Borrowings under the revolving credit facility can be made in U.S. dollars or in foreign currencies other than the U.S. dollar provided that the U.S. dollar equivalent of any foreign currency borrowings and U.S. dollar borrowings does not, in total, exceed the borrowing capacity of the revolving credit facility. Historically, we have used borrowings under our revolving credit facilities to meet certain short-term working capital needs, as well as for strategic uses, including repurchases of our common stock, payments of dividends, acquisitions, and facility expansions.

In addition to our revolving credit facility, we have various foreign credit facilities, some of which are tied to net amounts on deposit at certain foreign financial institutions. These foreign credit facilities are reviewed annually for renewal. We use borrowings under these foreign credit facilities to finance certain local operations on a periodic basis. For further discussion of our revolving credit facility and our other credit facilities, see Note 15, Credit facilities, short-term borrowings and long-term debt in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

At September 30, 2023, we had total outstanding debt of $721,526 consisting of various series of unsecured notes due between 2023 and 2033, and amounts borrowed under our revolving credit facility, and our finance leases. On November 15, 2023, Woodward paid the entire principal balance of $75,000 on the Series H and K Notes using proceeds from borrowings under its existing revolving credit facility.

At September 30, 2023, we had additional borrowing availability of $991,044 under our revolving credit facility, net of outstanding letters of credit, and additional borrowing availability of $25,143 under various foreign credit facilities.

At September 30, 2023, we had no outstanding amount borrowed under our revolving credit facility. Revolving credit facility and short-term borrowing activity during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 were as follows:

We believe we were in compliance with all our debt covenants as of September 30, 2023. See Note 15, Credit facilities, short-term borrowings and long-term debt in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in “Item 8 – Financial Statements and Supplemental Data,” for more information about our covenants.

In addition to utilizing our cash resources to fund the working capital needs of our business, we evaluate additional strategic uses of our funds, including the repurchase of our common stock, payment of dividends, significant capital expenditures, consideration of strategic acquisitions and other potential uses of cash. In January 2022, the Board terminated the 2019 Authorization and concurrently authorized a program for the repurchase of up to $800,000 of Woodward’s outstanding shares of common stock on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions over a two-year period ending in January 2024 (the “2022 Authorization”). During fiscal year 2023, we repurchased 1,060 shares of our common stock for $126,380 under the 2022 Authorization, as compared to 3,890 shares of our common stock for $446,042 under the 2022 Authorization during fiscal year 2022.

From time to time, the Company enters into various factoring agreements with third-party financial institutions to sell certain of its receivables. Factoring activity resulted in an increase of approximately $26,273 in cash provided by operating activities during the year ended September 30, 2023, compared to an increase in cash provided by operating activities of approximately $35,296 during the year ended September 30, 2022.

Our ability to service our long-term debt, to remain in compliance with the various restrictions and covenants contained in our debt agreements, and to fund working capital, capital expenditures, and product development efforts will depend on our ability to generate cash from operating activities, which in turn is subject to, among other things, future operating performance as well as general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory, and other conditions, some of which may be beyond our control.

We believe that cash flows from operations, along with our contractually committed borrowings and other borrowing capability, will continue to be sufficient to fund anticipated capital spending requirements and our operations for the foreseeable future. However, we could be adversely affected if the financial institutions providing our capital requirements refuse to honor their contractual commitments, cease lending, or declare bankruptcy. We believe the lending institutions participating in our credit arrangements are financially stable.

Cash Flows

2023 Cash Flows Compared to 2022

Net cash flows provided by operating activities for fiscal year 2023 was $308,543, compared to $193,638 for fiscal year 2022. The increase in net cash provided by operating activities in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 is primarily attributable to increased earnings, partially offset by working capital increases, and timing of tax payments.

Net cash flows used in investing activities for fiscal year 2023 was $73,551, compared to $65,449 in fiscal year 2022. The increase in cash used in investing activities in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 is primarily due to increased payments for property, plant, and equipment, partially offset by the purchase of PM Control in the prior fiscal year.

Net cash flows used in financing activities for fiscal year 2023 was $196,473, compared to $442,378 in fiscal year 2022. The decrease in net cash flows used in financing activities in fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 was attributable to the decrease in repurchases of common stock and a change in net debt payments as compared to borrowings. During fiscal year 2023, we made $126,380 of cash repurchases of common stock, compared to $485,300 of cash repurchases of common stock during fiscal year 2022. During fiscal year 2023, we had net debt payments in the amount of $67,579, compared to net debt borrowings in the amount of $66,003 in fiscal year 2022.

New Accounting Standards

From time to time, the FASB or other standards-setting bodies issue new accounting pronouncements. Updates to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification are communicated through issuance of an Accounting Standards Update.

To understand the impact of recently issued guidance, whether adopted or to be adopted, please review the information provided in Note 2, New accounting standards, in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K. Unless otherwise discussed, we believe that the impact of recently issued guidance, whether adopted or to be adopted in the future, is not expected to have a material impact on our Consolidated Financial Statements upon adoption.

Non-U.S. GAAP Financial Measures

Adjusted net earnings, adjusted earnings per share, adjusted effective tax rate, EBIT, adjusted EBIT, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow, and adjusted free cash flow are financial measures not prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. However, we believe these non-U.S. GAAP financial measures provide additional information that enables readers to evaluate our business from the perspective of management.

Earnings based non-U.S. GAAP financial measures

Adjusted net earnings is defined by the Company as net earnings excluding, as applicable, (i) a specific charge for excess and obsolete inventory, (ii) product rationalization, (iii) a restructuring charge, (iv) a non-recurring charge related to customer collections, (v) certain non-restructuring separation costs, (vi) a charge in connection with a non-recurring matter unrelated to the ongoing operations of the business, and (vii) costs related to business development activities. The product rationalization adjustment pertains to a non-recurring write-off of inventory and assets related to the elimination of certain product lines. The specific charge for excess and obsolete inventory pertains to a non-recurring process change that resulted in the identification and write down of certain excess inventory unrelated to product rationalization. The non-recurring charge related to customer collections pertains to a discrete process issue that was identified and corrected. The Company believes that these excluded items are short-term in nature, not directly related to the ongoing operations of the business and therefore, the exclusion of them illustrates more clearly how the underlying business of Woodward is performing. Management uses adjusted net earnings to evaluate the Company’s performance excluding these infrequent or unusual period expenses that are not necessarily indicative of the Company’s operating performance for the period. Management defines adjusted earnings per share as adjusted net earnings, as defined above, divided by the weighted-average number of diluted shares of common stock outstanding for the period. Management uses both adjusted net earnings and adjusted earnings per share when comparing operating performance to other periods which may not have similar infrequent or unusual charges.

The reconciliation of net earnings and earnings per share to adjusted net earnings and adjusted earnings per share, respectively, for the fiscal years ended and are shown in the table below:

(1) Presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(2) $4,374 is presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" and $3,522 is presented in the line item "Selling, general and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(3) Presented in the line item "Selling, general, and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

Management uses EBIT to evaluate Woodward’s performance without financing and tax related considerations, as these elements may not fluctuate with operating results. Management uses EBITDA in evaluating Woodward’s operating performance, making business decisions, including developing budgets, managing expenditures, forecasting future periods, and evaluating capital structure impacts of various strategic scenarios. Securities analysts, investors and others frequently use EBIT and EBITDA in their evaluation of companies, particularly those with significant property, plant, and equipment, and intangible assets subject to amortization. The Company believes that EBIT and EBITDA are useful measures to the investor when measuring operating performance as they eliminate the impact of financing and tax expenses, which are non-operating expenses and may be driven by factors outside of our operations, such as changes in tax laws or regulations, and, in the case of EBITDA, the noncash charges associated with depreciation and amortization. Further, as interest from financing, income taxes, depreciation, and amortization can vary dramatically between companies and between periods, management believes that the removal of these items can improve comparability.

Adjusted EBIT and adjusted EBITDA represent further non-U.S. GAAP adjustments to EBIT and EBITDA, in each case adjusted to exclude, as applicable, (i) a specific charge for excess and obsolete inventory, (ii) product rationalization, (iii) a restructuring charge, (iv) a non-recurring charge related to customer collections, (v) certain non-restructuring separation costs, (vi) a charge in connection with a non-recurring matter unrelated to the ongoing operations of the business, and (vii) costs related to business development activities. The product rationalization adjustment pertains to a non-recurring write-off of inventory and assets related to the elimination of certain product lines. The specific charge for excess and obsolete inventory pertains to a non-recurring process change that resulted in the identification and write down of certain excess inventory unrelated to product rationalization. The non-recurring charge related to customer collections pertains to a discrete process issue that was identified and corrected. As these charges are infrequent or unusual items that can be variable from period to period and do not fluctuate with operating results, management believes that by removing these gains and charges from EBIT and EBITDA it improves comparability of past, present and future operating results and provides consistency when comparing EBIT and EBITDA between periods.

EBIT and adjusted EBIT reconciled to net earnings were as follows:

(1) Presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(2) $5,822 is presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" and $4,682 is presented in the line item " Selling, general and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(3) Presented in the line item "Selling, general, and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA reconciled to net earnings were as follows:

(1) Presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(2) $5,822 is presented in the line item "Cost of goods sold" and $4,682 is presented in the line item " Selling, general and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

(3) Presented in the line item "Selling, general, and administrative" expenses in Woodward's Consolidated Statements of Earnings.

The use of these non-U.S. GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. As adjusted net earnings, adjusted net earnings per share, adjusted effective tax rate, EBIT, adjusted EBIT, EBITDA, and adjusted EBITDA exclude certain financial information compared with net earnings, the most comparable U.S. GAAP financial measure, users of this financial information should consider the information that is excluded. Our calculations of adjusted net earnings, adjusted net earnings per share, EBIT, adjusted EBIT, EBITDA, and adjusted EBITDA may differ from similarly titled measures used by other companies, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures.

Cash flow-based non-U.S. GAAP financial measures

Management uses free cash flow, which is defined by the Company as net cash flows provided by operating activities less payments for property, plant, and equipment, in reviewing the financial performance of and cash generation by Woodward’s various business groups and evaluating cash levels. We believe free cash flow is a useful measure for investors because it portrays our ability to grow organically and generate cash from our businesses for purposes such as paying interest on our indebtedness, repaying maturing debt, funding business acquisitions, investing in research and development, purchasing our common stock, and paying dividends. In addition, securities analysts, investors, and others frequently use free cash flow in their evaluation of companies. Adjusted free cash flow represents a further non-U.S. GAAP adjustment to free cash flow to exclude the effect of cash paid for business development activities, restructuring activities, and certain non-restructuring separation costs. Management believes that excluding these infrequent or unusual items from free cash flow better portrays our ability to generate cash, as such items are not indicative of the Company’s operating performance for the period.

The use of these non-U.S. GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation of, or as substitutes for, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow do not necessarily represent funds available for discretionary use and are not necessarily a measure of our ability to fund our cash needs. Our calculation of free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow may differ from similarly titled measures used by other companies, limiting their usefulness as a comparative measure.

Free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow were as follows:

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES

The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires us to make judgments, assumptions, and estimates that affect the amounts reported in the Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes. Note 1, Operations and summary of significant accounting policies, to the Consolidated Financial Statements describes the significant accounting policies and methods used in the preparation of the Consolidated Financial Statements. The estimates and assumptions described below are those that we consider to be most critical to an understanding of our financial statements because they involve significant judgments and uncertainties. All of these estimates reflect our best judgment about current, and for some estimates, future economic and market conditions, and their effects based on information available as of the date of these financial statements. As estimates are updated or actual amounts are known, our critical accounting estimates are revised, and operating results may be affected by the revised estimates. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

Our management has discussed the development and selection of these critical accounting estimates with the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors, and the Audit Committee has reviewed our disclosures in this Management’s Discussion and Analysis.

Revenue recognition

Revenue is recognized on contracts with customers for arrangements in which quantities and pricing are fixed and/or determinable and are generally based on customer purchase orders, often within the framework of a long-term supply arrangement with the customer. We recognize revenue for performance obligations within a customer contract when control of the associated product or service is transferred to the customer. Some of our contracts with customers contain a single performance obligation, while other contracts contain multiple performance obligations. Each product within a contract generally represents a separate performance obligation as we do not provide significant installation and integration services, the products do not customize each other, and the products can function independently of each other.

A contract's transaction price is allocated to each performance obligation and recognized as revenue when, or as, the customer obtains control of the associated product or service. When there are multiple performance obligations within a contract, we generally use the observable standalone sales price for each distinct product or service within the contract to allocate the transaction price to the distinct products or services. In instances when a standalone sales price for each product or service is not observable within the contract, we allocate the transaction price to each performance obligation using an estimate of the standalone selling price for each product or service, which is generally based on incurred costs plus a reasonable margin, for each distinct product or service in the contract.

When determining the transaction price of each contract, we consider contractual consideration payable by the customer and variable consideration that may affect the total transaction price. Variable consideration, consisting of early payment discounts, rebates, and other sources of price variability, are included in the estimated transaction price based on both customer-specific information as well as historical experience. We regularly review our estimates of variable consideration on the transaction price and recognize changes in estimates on a cumulative catch-up basis as if the most current estimate of the transaction price adjusted for variable consideration had been known as of the inception of the contract.

Point in time and over time revenue recognition

Control of the products generally transfers to the customer at a point in time, if the customer does not control the products as they are produced. We exercise judgment and consider the timing of right of payment, transfer of the risk and rewards, transfers of title, transfer of physical possession, and customer acceptance when determining when control of the product transfers to the customer, generally upon shipment of products. Performance obligations are satisfied and revenue is recognized over time if: (i) the customer receives the benefits as we perform work, if the customer controls the asset as it is being enhanced, or if the product being produced for the customer has no alternative use to us; and (ii) we have an enforceable right to payment with a profit. When services are provided, revenue from those services is recognized over time because control is transferred continuously to customers as we perform the work.

For services that are not short-term in nature, manufacturing, repair, and overhaul (“MRO”), and sales of products that have no alternative use to us and an enforceable right to payment with a profit, we use an actual cost input measure to determine the extent of progress towards completion of the performance obligation. For these revenue streams, revenue is recognized over time as work is performed based on the relationship between actual costs incurred to-date for each contract and the total estimated costs for such contract at completion of the performance obligation (the cost-to-cost method). We have concluded that this measure of progress best depicts the transfer of assets to the customer, because incurred costs are integral to our completion of the performance obligation under the specific customer contract and correlate directly to the transfer of control to the customer. Contract costs include labor, material, and overhead. Contract cost estimates are based on various assumptions to project the outcome of future events. These assumptions include labor productivity, and availability; the complexity of the work to be performed; the cost and availability of materials; the performance of subcontractors; and the availability and timing of funding from the customer. Revenues, including estimated fees or profits, are recorded proportionally as costs are incurred.

Inventory

Inventories are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Inventory cost is determined using methods that approximate the first-in, first-out basis. We include product costs, labor, and related fixed and variable overhead in the cost of inventories. Inventory net realizable values are determined by giving substantial consideration to the expected product selling price. We estimate expected selling prices based on our historical recovery rates, general economic, and market conditions, the expected channel of disposition, and current customer contracts and preferences. Actual results may differ from our estimates due to changes in resale or market value and the mix of these factors.

We monitor inventory for events or circumstances, such as negative margins, recent sales history suggesting lower sales value, or changes in customer preferences, which would indicate the net realizable value of inventory is less than the carrying value of inventory, and management records adjustments as necessary. When inventory is written down below cost, such reduced amount is considered the cost for subsequent accounting purposes. Our recording of inventory at the lower of cost or net realizable value has not historically required material adjustments once initially established.

The carrying value of inventory was $517,843 at September 30, 2023 and $514,287 at September 30, 2022. If economic conditions, customer product requirements, or other factors significantly reduce future customer demand for our products from forecast levels, then future adjustments to the carrying value of inventory may become necessary. We attempt to maintain inventory quantities at levels considered necessary to fill firm and expected orders in a reasonable time frame, which we believe mitigates our exposure to future inventory carrying cost adjustments.

Reviews for impairment of goodwill and other indefinitely lived intangible assets

Goodwill

At September 30, 2023, we had $791,468 of goodwill representing approximately 20% of our total assets. Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level on an annual basis and more often if an event occurs or circumstances change that indicate the fair value of a reporting unit may be below its carrying amount.

The identification of reporting units and consideration of the aggregation of components into a single reporting unit under U.S. GAAP requires management judgment. The impairment test consists of comparing the fair value of reporting units, determined using discounted cash flows, with their carrying amount including goodwill. If the carrying amount of the reporting unit exceeds its fair value, we compare the implied fair value of goodwill with its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of goodwill exceeds the implied fair value of goodwill, an impairment loss would be recognized to reduce the carrying amount to its implied fair value.

During the fourth quarter, we completed our annual goodwill impairment test as of July 31, 2023 for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023. The results of our annual goodwill impairment test performed as of July 31, 2023, indicated the estimated fair value of each reporting unit was in excess of its carrying value, and accordingly, no impairment existed.

Indefinitely lived intangible asset

We have one indefinitely lived intangible asset consisting of the Woodward L’Orange trade name. At September 30, 2023, the carrying value of the Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset was $61,307, representing approximately 2% of our total assets. The Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset is tested for impairment on an annual basis and more often if an event occurs or circumstances change that indicate the fair value of the Woodward L’Orange intangible asset may be below its carrying amount. The impairment test consists of comparing the fair value of the Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset, determined using discounted cash flows based on the relief from royalty method under the income approach, with its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of the Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset exceeds its fair value, an impairment loss would be recognized to reduce the carrying amount to its fair value. Woodward has not recorded any impairment charges associated with the indefinitely lived intangible asset.

During the fourth quarter, we completed the annual impairment test, for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, of the Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset as of July 31, 2023. The results of the annual impairment test performed as of July 31, 2023 indicated the estimated fair value of the Woodward L’Orange trade name intangible asset was in excess of its carrying value, and accordingly, no impairment existed.

As part of our ongoing monitoring efforts to assess goodwill and the Woodward L’Orange trade name indefinite lived asset for possible indications of impairment, we will continue to consider a wide variety of factors, including but not limited to the global economic environment and its potential impact on our business. There can be no assurance that our estimates and assumptions regarding forecasted cash flows of certain reporting units or the Woodward L’Orange business, the current economic environment, or the other inputs used in forecasting the present value of forecasted cash flows will prove to be accurate projections of future performance.

Income taxes

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in evaluating our tax positions and determining our provision for income taxes.

During the ordinary course of business, there are many transactions and calculations for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. We establish reserves for tax-related uncertainties based on estimates of whether, and the extent to which, additional taxes will be due. The reserves are established when we believe that certain positions are likely to be challenged and may not be fully sustained on review by tax authorities. We adjust these reserves in light of changing facts and circumstances, such as the closing of a tax audit or refinement of an estimate. Although we believe our reserves are reasonable, no assurance can be given that the final outcome of these matters will be consistent with what is reflected in our historical income tax provisions and accruals. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different from the amounts recorded, such differences will impact the current provision for income taxes.

Significant judgment is also required in determining any valuation allowance recorded against deferred tax assets. The determination of the amount of valuation allowance to be provided on recorded deferred tax assets involves estimates regarding the timing and amount of the reversal of taxable temporary differences, expected future taxable income, and the impact of tax planning strategies. A valuation allowance is established to offset any deferred tax assets if, based upon the available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. In assessing the need for a valuation allowance, we consider all available evidence including past operating results, estimates of future taxable income, and the feasibility of tax planning strategies. Changes in the relevant facts can significantly impact the judgment or need for valuation allowances. In the event we change our determination as to the amount of deferred tax assets that can be realized, we will adjust our valuation allowance with a corresponding impact to the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made.

Our provision for income taxes is subject to volatility and could be affected by earnings that are different than those anticipated in countries which have lower or higher tax rates; by transfer pricing adjustments; and/or changes in tax laws, regulations, and accounting principles, including accounting for uncertain tax positions, or interpretations thereof. There can be no assurance that these items will remain stable over time. Additionally, Woodward records through income tax expense all future excess tax benefits and tax deficiencies from stock options exercised. This creates unpredictable volatility in the effective tax rate because the additional expense or benefit recognized each quarter is based on the timing of the employee’s election to exercise any vested stock options outstanding, which is outside Woodward’s control, and the market price of Woodward’s shares at the time of exercise, which is subject to market volatility.

Our effective tax rates differ from the U.S. statutory rate primarily due to the tax impact of foreign operations, adjustments of valuation allowances, research tax credits, state taxes, and tax audit settlements. In addition to potential local country tax law and policy changes that could impact the provision for income taxes, management’s judgment about and intentions concerning the repatriation of foreign earnings could also significantly impact the provision for income taxes. Management reassesses its judgment regularly, taking into consideration the potential tax impacts of these judgments, and intentions.

In the normal course of business, we have exposures to interest rate risk from our long-term and short-term debt, and our postretirement benefit plans, and foreign currency exchange rate risk related to our foreign operations and foreign currency transactions.

Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk, Interest Rate Risk, and Related Hedging Activities

We are impacted by changes in foreign currency exchange rates when we sell product in currencies different from the currency in which product and manufacturing costs were incurred. The functional currencies and our purchasing and sales activities primarily include USD, EUR, RMB, JPY, and GBP. We may also be impacted by changes in the relative buying power of our customers, which may impact sales volumes either positively or negatively. As these currencies fluctuate against each other, and other currencies, we are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk on sales, purchasing transactions, and labor. Foreign currency exchange rate risk is reduced through the maintenance of local production facilities in the markets we serve, which we believe creates a natural hedge to our foreign currency exchange rate exposure.

The percentages of our net sales denominated in a currency other than the USD were as follows:

Currency exchange rates vary daily and often one currency strengthens against the USD while another currency weakens. Because of the complex interrelationship of our worldwide supply chains and distribution channels, it is difficult to quantify the impact of a particular change in exchange rates.

We use derivative instruments as risk management tools that involve complexity and are not used for trading or speculative purposes. From time to time, we will enter into a foreign currency exchange rate contract to hedge against changes in foreign currency exchange rates on liabilities expected to be settled at a future date. Market risk arises from the potential adverse effects on the value of derivative instruments that result from a change in foreign currency exchange rates. We minimize this market risk by establishing and monitoring parameters that limit the types of, and degree to which we enter into, derivative instruments. We enter into derivative instruments for risk management purposes only. We do not enter into or issue derivatives for trading or speculative purposes. As of September 30, 2023 and 2022, we had no open foreign currency exchange rate contracts and all previous exchange rate derivative instruments were settled or terminated.

For more information on derivative instruments, see Note 8, Derivative instruments and hedging activities, in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in “Item 8 – Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Our reported financial results of operations, including the reported value of our assets and liabilities, are also impacted by changes in foreign currency exchange rates. The assets and liabilities of substantially all of our subsidiaries outside the United States are translated at period end rates of exchange for each reporting period. Earnings and cash flow statements are translated at weighted-average rates of exchange. Although these translation changes have no immediate cash impact, the translation changes may impact future borrowing capacity, debt covenants, and the overall value of our net assets. In addition, we also have assets and liabilities, specifically accounts receivable, accounts payable, and current inter-company receivables and payables, whose carrying amounts approximate their fair value, which are denominated in currencies other than their relevant functional currencies. Foreign currency exchange rate risk is mitigated through several means, including the invoicing of customers in the same currency as the source of the products, and the prompt settlement of inter-company balances utilizing a global netting system.

We have established disclosure controls and procedures, which are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in reports filed or submitted under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Act”) is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. These disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Act is accumulated and communicated to management, including our Principal Executive Officer (Charles P. Blankenship, Jr., Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, and President) and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer (William F. Lacey, Chief Financial Officer), as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures.

Charles P. Blankenship, Jr. and William F. Lacey evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this Form 10-K. Based on their evaluations, they concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of September 30, 2023.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting for the Company. Our management has evaluated the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting using the criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission and, based on that evaluation, concluded that the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was effective as of September 30, 2023, the end of the Company’s most recent fiscal year.

Deloitte & Touche LLP (PCAOB ID No. 34), an independent registered public accounting firm, conducted an audit of Woodward’s internal control over financial reporting as of September 30, 2023 as stated in their report included in “Item 8 – Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed by, or under the supervision of, our principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, and effected by our Board of Directors, management, and other personnel, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of our financial reporting and the preparation of our financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that:

• Pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company;
• Provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorization of management and directors of the Company; and
• Provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the fourth fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2023 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.