Boeing posts $1.5B loss, weaker revenue

Higher costs and delays bring about loss of revenue

Boeing reported a wider loss and weaker revenue than analysts had expected for the first three months of the year amid higher costs and delays, including pushing back production of its next-generation twin-aisle plane.

The company said it lost nearly $1.5 billion in the first quarter on total revenue of just under $14 billion, both just below analysts’ estimates. The company also reported a loss of more than $2 per share.

“While the first quarter of 2022 brought new challenges for our world, industry and business, I am proud of our team and the steady progress we’re making toward our key commitments,” Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said in a statement.

The slowdowns and higher costs stemmed from Russia’s war in Ukraine and regulators’ quality concerns. The company reported negative operating cash flow for the quarter of $3.2 billion, but said that it still expected positive cash flow for the year. Boeing’s stock fell 7.5% Wednesday.

Boeing said it had paused production of the 777-9, a new wide-body plane, through 2023, in part because of the additional time the company expects it will need to meet certification requirements. The plane’s first delivery is now slated for 2025, with the delay expected to cost $1.5 billion, starting in the second quarter, Boeing said.

The company’s defense, space and security division also saw increased costs, including $660 million related to production of the VC-25B, the future Air Force One. Boeing blamed that on schedule delays and higher costs from suppliers and to meet technical requirements.

The division also reported a $367 million charge for the T-7A Red Hawk, a training jet designed for the Air Force. Boeing also said it had a $212 million charge related to the war in Ukraine.

Boeing did have some good news to report: It made progress toward increasing production of the 737 Max, a crucial moneymaking plane, and expressed optimism around restarting deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner — two important parts of its commercial airplane division. The unit delivered 95 planes in the first quarter of the year.

Boeing has mostly recovered from the crisis involving the Max, a single-aisle plane that was banned globally for nearly two years after a pair of fatal crashes. Since the planes began flying again at the end of 2020, they have put in more than 1 million flight hours globally, the company said. Boeing expects to reach a production rate of 31 Max planes per month by the end of June, with new orders coming in and deliveries going out steadily.

“The commercial market recovery is broadening and demand is solid as operators look to bring capacity back online and plan for growth, with an eye on sustainability,” Calhoun said in a note to staff.

Deliveries of the 787 Dreamliner were paused nearly a year ago amid quality concerns. Boeing said it had submitted a certification plan for the twin-aisle plane to the Federal Aviation Administration and completed necessary fixes on some Dreamliners, with test flights underway. The company said it stood by an earlier estimate that the delays would cost it about $2 billion, a portion of which was incurred in the first quarter. Boeing is producing the plane at a low rate, but it plans to eventually restore production to five 787s per month.

Boeing’s global services business also performed well in the quarter, with revenue of $4.3 billion, up 15% from the same period a year earlier.