Boeing's revenue and cash flow increased significantly in the second quarter
The company's second quarter 2026 financial report released on Tuesday showed that thanks to the increase in commercial aircraft deliveries, the company's revenue and cash flow have achieved significant growth. However, dragged down by the new costs of the "Air Force One" project, the profit side is far less than market expectations. The financial report showed that Boeing’s second-quarter revenue was US$24.6 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8%, exceeding market expectations of US$24.25 billion. GAAP loss per share for the quarter was $0.67, and core loss per share was $0.76, much higher than analysts' expectations of a loss of about $0.30. Net loss reached US$428 million. Cash flow performance became the biggest highlight of this quarter. The company achieved cash flow from operating activities of US$1.364 billion and free cash flow of US$631 million, which was far better than analysts' expectations of a net outflow of approximately US$331 million. Boeing maintained full-year free cash flow guidance of $1 billion to $3 billion. The commercial aircraft business remains the core driver of recovery. The segment’s revenue was US$11.8 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8%, and its operating loss narrowed to US$322 million from US$557 million in the same period last year. A total of 171 commercial aircraft were delivered in the second quarter, a year-on-year increase of 14%. The 737 Max has begun to climb towards the monthly production target of 47 aircraft. The certification flight tests of the 737-7 and 737-10 have been completed and are expected to be certified in 2026. The defense, aerospace and security sector had revenue of US$7.5 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13%, but an operating loss of US$15 million. The main drag comes from the VC-25B presidential plane project, which once again incurred cost overruns of US$280 million and has caused cumulative losses of more than US$3 billion. Boeing cited increased investment in engineering and quality personnel and certification resources as the main reason, and still expects the first aircraft to be delivered in 2028. As of quarter-end, the company's total order backlog increased to a record $715 billion, including more than 6,200 commercial aircraft. Consolidated debt fell to $45.9 billion, and it held approximately $20 billion in cash and investable securities.