The Boeing Company BA recently reported the delivery figures of its commercial and defense operations for the third quarter of 2024. It recorded a year-over-year increase of 10.5% and 21.4% in commercial and defense shipments, respectively.
Combining both segments, Boeing’s deliveries totaled 150 units compared with 133 in the year-ago period. Such solid delivery numbers might have led to a year-over-year improvement in BA’s third-quarter top line.
BA Stock’s Commercial Deliveries Surge
Boeing reported commercial deliveries of 116 airplanes in the third quarter of 2024, up from the prior-year level of 105, primarily driven by higher 737 deliveries.
The shipments of 737 totaled 92 compared with 70 in the year-ago period. However, deliveries of 787 jet models sank to 14 from 19 in the corresponding period of 2023. Apart from these, Boeing delivered six 767 jets during the third quarter compared with eight in the year-earlier period.
The company also delivered four 777 jets in the third quarter, down from eight in the prior-year period.
What Led to Higher 737 Deliveries?
Boeing’s 737 jet program seems to have finally recovered from the concurrent challenges it has suffered lately, especially following the door plug blowout event in January 2024. Notably, the grounding of 737 jets consequent to this event forced the jet maker to slow down its production rates and delay planned production rate increases for the 737 program, with the company putting more effort into quality control.
Consequently, Boeing began conducting fuselage inspections to improve quality prior to shipment in the first quarter of 2024. In the second quarter, a gradual increase in production rates was observed as BA implemented new processes as part of its safety and quality plan. The improved delivery figures in the third quarter of 2024 thus reflect the successful fruition of the aforementioned measures adopted by Boeing.
Fortunately, the company did not witness any order cancellation for its commercial jets in recent times. This might have also played the role of a catalyst for its 737 deliveries.
However, a persistent shortage of raw materials and mechanists’ strikes might have hindered the delivery of its other commercial jet programs in the third quarter.
Boeing Vs. Airbus
A comparative analysis of Boeing’s archrival Airbus SE’s EADSY 2024 commercial aircraft shows that the latter was ahead regarding delivery numbers. Notably, Airbus delivered 174 commercial aircraft in the second quarter compared with Boeing’s 150.
The year-over-year change in deliveries also reflects a similar story. While deliveries for Boeing indicate an improvement of 10.5%, the same for EADSY signals a rise of 1.2%.
BA’s Defense Deliveries Also Took an Upturn
Boeing reported defense deliveries of 34 airplanes in the third quarter of 2024, up from the prior-year level of 28.
The shipments of AH-64 Apache (new) deliveries were seven compared with the year-ago period’s figure of five. Eleven AH-64 Apache (remanufactured) were delivered compared with nine in the corresponding period of 2023.
Also, Boeing delivered five KC-46 Tankers compared with three in the third quarter of 2023. The shipments of F-15 Models rose to three from none in the prior-year quarter.
The delivery of MH-139 Models came in at three compared with one in the prior-year quarter. One T-7A jet was delivered in the third quarter, flat year over year.
However, the delivery of CH-47 Chinook (renewed) jets decreased to two from three in the year-ago quarter.
The delivery of F/A-18 Models came in at one compared with three in the third quarter of 2023. One P-8 jet was delivered in the third quarter compared with two in the prior-year period.
BA delivered no CH-47 Chinook (new) jet during the third quarter compared with one in the year-ago quarter.
Expectations From Peers
Prominent jet makers that are yet to report their delivery numbers are Textron TXT and Embraer S.A. ERJ.
In the last reported quarter, Embraer delivered 46 jets, including 19 commercial and 27 executive (20 light and seven midsize) jets. At the end of the second quarter of 2024, Embraer's backlog was $21.1 billion.
The stock boasts an average four-quarter earnings surprise of 52.28%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ERJ’s 2024 sales implies an improvement of 19.1% from the prior-year reported figure. Shares of Embraer have risen 76.2% in the year-to-date period.
Textron delivered 42 jets in the last reported quarter, down from 44 in the second quarter of 2023. It also delivered 44 commercial turboprops, up from 37 a year ago. The company delivered 32 commercial helicopters in the second quarter of 2024, down from 35 in the year-ago period. At the end of the second quarter, Textron recorded a backlog of $13.42 billion.
The long-term earnings growth rate for Textron is 10.1%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TXT’s 2024 earnings indicates growth of 5% from the prior-year reported figure. Textron’s shares have rallied 9.4% in the year-to-date period.
Price Performance
Shares of Boeing have lost 10% in the past six months against the industry’s growth of 10.2%.
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Zacks Rank
The company carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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