MILAN, Italy — Italy's Finmeccanica announced a 23 percent rise in core profits in 2015, driven by restructuring and cost-cutting.

The firm, which also also announced it will change its name to Leonardo, after Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci, saw earnings before interest, tax and amortization (EBITA) rise to €1.2 billion (US $1.35 billion), with guidance for 2016 between €1.22 billion and €1.27 billion.

The figures reflect the streamlining of the company by CEO Mauro Moretti, who joined in 2014 and has grouped the firm's semi-autonomous units in centralized divisions. Profits before the addition of proceeds from the sale of transport units stood at €253 million, up on €15 million last year.

Including the proceeds, profits rose to €527 million. Debt stood at €3.28 million, down 17 percent from last year, while revenue rose 1.8 percent to €13 billion.

New orders reached €12.4 billion, a stable figure that masked large fluctuations between divisions.

Helicopter orders dropped 14 percent from €4.56 billion to €3.9 billion due to the slowdown on Italy's new Chinooks and the dip in oil prices driving down the need for oil rig helicopters, including the firm's big-selling AW139.

Aeronautical orders dipped 44 percent from €3.1 billion to €1.74 billion due in part to delays in Italian orders for new trainer aircraft, the firm said.

Electronics orders however shot up 32 percent from €5 billion to €6.7 billion, comprising orders for US unit DRS and European-based electronics work formerly under the name Selex.

In Europe, the rise was driven by orders related to Italy's large order of new Navy ships.

DRS orders grew from €1.46 billion to €1.82 billion, with the unit seeing "a good commercial performance, better than last year, mainly attributable to export orders, including the order from the Canadian Army for the LRSS (Light Armored Vehicle - Reconnaissance Surveillance System) program," the firm said.

"Main domestic orders included the main propulsion drive on the Ohio-class submarine of the US Navy, the supply of ENVGs (Enhanced Night-Vision Goggles) and additional activities on the MFoCS (Mounted Family of Computing Systems) program for the US Army," the firm added.

DRS revenues in 2015 rose 15 percent from €1.4 billion to €1.6 billion, with "higher production volumes in the Maritime & Combat Support systems segment" offsetting "expected decline in deliveries of infrared products and systems to the US Army, as well as in services in support of troops in areas of operations."

With profitability due to increase in 2016, the firm said DRS was enjoying "a turnaround with respect to the trend that affected DRS in the past financial years."

The result follows the disposal of non-core businesses in 2015 "in the sectors of aviation, communications and homeland security (partly to IAP Worldwide Services and partly to the US Coast Guard), as well as the disposal of a stake of 30 percent in N2 Imaging Systems LLC to United Technologies."

Sales in the Defense Systems division, which groups the former units Oto Melara and WASS, saw new orders grow from €209 million to €686 million, again related to Italy's order of new multi-purpose ships.

Overall, the firm said it had an order backlog of nearly €29 billion.

Tom Kington is the Italy correspondent for Defense News.

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