Boeing Posts a Surprise Loss Despite Booming Aircraft Sales in 2022

Boeing today (Jan. 25) posted an unexpected loss for both the last three months of 2022 and the full year despite a post-Covid rebound in airplane sales that boosted its revenue. Boeing shares fell around 3 percent in this morning.

The aerospace giant recorded a loss of $663 million, or $1.75 per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31 on $20 billion in revenue and $5 billion in full-year loss on $66.6 billion in revenue. Analysts had expected a net quarterly earnings of $0.26 per share on $20.38 billion in revenue.

The good news is Boeing reported positive cash flow for the first time since 2018, after two fatal 737 Max crashes sent the company into a years-long crisis. During the last quarter, the company generated $3.1 billion in free cash flow, higher than analyst forecasts.

Boeing’s commercial aircraft sales nearly doubled in the last three months to $9.2 billion, but it was not enough to offset high research and development costs and abnormal expenses, the company said.