I see your point and agree regarding informing the market that...

I see your point and agree regarding informing the market that earnings like what was received last year may have been abnormal. However, that could be argued that they thought orders of that size may continue. I personally haven't noticed anything that would give me reason to believe militaries around the world are scaling back, quite the contrary actually. Perhaps there is more DD that needs to be done by potential customers to validate new vendors before orders can be placed?

Regarding the inventory statement, this could also be taken a few ways. Was this to gain economies of scale with production, anticipation of near term large orders or insurance against unreliable supply chains? The company has been repeatability beaten down regarding increased inventory holdings and they are acknowledging the need to run this down which to me is acknowledging the market's concern and acting on it.

Many businesses are in similar boats with increased inventory due to supply chain risks and the current geopolitical landscape. Gone are the days of holding minimum stock and make to order business models (at least in the mid term).

XTE fundamentals look very compelling to me. Current MC approx. 30mil vs net assets 40mil in an industry with high barriers for new entrants, good IP / product and inventory on hand to meet urgent orders.