Boeing (BA) 3Q 2025 earnings

Boeing said Wednesday its jetliner deliveries drove it back into cash-positive territory for the first time in nearly two years, but it took a $4.9 billion charge on additional delays of its long-awaited 777X wide-body plane.

Boeing is on track to deliver the most aircraft this year since 2018, before two crashes grounded its bestselling jetliner, the Covid pandemic hit supply chains and a host of manufacturing crises drove years of losses at the top U.S. exporter.

CEO Kelly Ortberg, an aerospace veteran who came out of retirement to helm Boeing in August 2024, has worked to steady the manufacturer’s sprawling supply chain and cash-generating production lines.

The 777X, an updated version of its 777 plane, took its first flight nearly six years ago but still hasn’t won regulator approval. Boeing says it now expects the first delivery in 2027, leading to the noncash charge.

“While there’s still more work to do to advance our development programs, particularly on our commercial development and certification programs, we’re seeing positive signs across our business, and I’m proud of how we are coming together to turn our company around,” Ortberg said in a staff note.

Still, Boeing generated free cash flow of $238 million, its first time in the black on that metric since late 2023.

Boeing lost $4.78 billion, or $7.14 a share, in the three months ended Sept. 30. That’s better than a $5.76 billion loss a year earlier. On an adjusted basis, the company reported a loss of $7.47 a share. Revenue jumped 30% to $23.27 billion for the third quarter, up from $17.84 billion a year ago and ahead of analysts’ estimates.

A year ago, Boeing machinists were on strike in a contract impasse that crippled production at the majority of the company’s commercial airplane factories.

Here’s how Boeing performed for the third quarter compared with analysts’ estimates compiled by LSEG:

• Loss per share: $7.47 per share adjusted vs. a loss of $4.59 expected
• Revenue: $23.27 billion vs. $21.97 billion expected

Airline customers have said they’ve seen an improvement at Boeing, with more accurate delivery projections, a change in tune from the complaints of prior years.

In the first nine months of the year, Boeing delivered 440 airplanes, up from 291 in the same period last year. Airlines and other customers pay for the bulk of the planes when they receive them, so increasing the delivery pace is key for Boeing to stem an outflow of cash totaling close to $17 billion since the start of 2024 through June of this year.

Last year was supposed to be a turnaround year for Boeing, but a midair blowout of a door panel in…