Boeing (NYSE:BA) reported a $2.4-billion loss for the second quarter Wednesday and said it plans to slow production of its main commercial aircraft as the coronavirus pandemic hurts demand for new planes and its best-selling 737 Max jets remain grounded.
The pandemic has driven up financial losses at Boeing’s airline customers and hurt demand for new planes, though Boeing was in crisis before coronavirus spread around the world.
Boeing’s shares were unchanged in early Wednesday trading to $170.84. But the stock is trading at roughly half its value from a year ago, and its best-selling plane, the 737 Max, has been grounded since March 2019 following two fatal crashes. Regulators aren’t expected to clear the planes to fly again before the fall.
Results came in worse than analysts expected. For the quarter ended June 30, Boeing’s net loss narrowed to $2.40 billion, or $4.20 per share, from $2.94 billion, or $5.21 per share, a year ago.
On an adjusted basis, Boeing lost $4.79 per share, compared with a $2.54 per-share loss Wall Street estimated.
Revenue fell 25% to $11.81 billion from $15.75 billion, in the year-ago quarter, and was below analysts’ forecasts for sales of $13.16 billion.
The lengthy grounding of the 737 Max along with financial pain at carriers has driven up cancellations of new Boeing jetliners this year, meaning less cash for manufacturers and suppliers.
Boeing is set to detail the impact of weaker demand for its aircraft and deferrals of new orders, a soured outlook that has rippled down to big suppliers like engine-maker General Electric and Spirit Aerosystems.