By Radarr Africa Business Desk
LAGOS, October 28 (Radarr Africa) – Boeing shares fell 10.7% on Tuesday after the aircraft maker reported a larger-than-expected third-quarter loss, even though its order backlog reached a record $745.4 billion, according to the Associated Press and Boeing’s results statement.
The company reported a net loss of $116 million for the quarter ended September 30, compared with a loss of $5.3 billion a year earlier, Boeing said. The loss per share was $0.26, against $7.14 in the third quarter of 2025. Revenue rose 4% to $24.2 billion.
Analysts had expected a loss of 21 cents a share on revenue of $23.84 billion, TheStreet reported. The publication said the stock fell after Boeing missed earnings and cut its delivery target. The Associated Press attributed the loss to jetliner production challenges.
Boeing reported a GAAP operating profit of $354 million, a swing from an operating loss of $4.8 billion a year earlier. On a core basis, which excludes certain items, operating earnings were $204 million and the core loss was $0.34 per share.
Operating cash flow was $1.5 billion and free cash flow was $464 million after $1.0 billion of capital spending. About $0.7 billion of Department of Justice settlement payments weighed on the quarter. Cash and marketable securities totalled $20.7 billion, against consolidated debt of $45.9 billion, and a $10.0 billion credit facility remains undrawn, the company said.
Boeing delivered 161 commercial aeroplanes in the quarter, made up of 124 737s, 22 787s, 10 767s and 5 777s. That compares with 160 a year earlier. The commercial airplanes unit booked 300 net orders in the quarter, including from Turkish Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines and Lufthansa, according to the statement.
The commercial unit posted revenue of $10.7 billion, down 3%, and an operating loss of $697 million. Boeing cited a less favourable delivery mix, higher costs tied to future production rate changes and higher supply chain costs.
The defence, space and security unit reported revenue of $7.9 billion, up 15%, and earnings of $492 million, helped by a $252 million gain on the sale of HRL Laboratories. Global services reported revenue of $5.6 billion and earnings of $1.0 billion.
Total backlog stood at $745.4 billion, up from $682.2 billion at the end of 2025. Commercial airplanes accounted for $611.8 billion, including more than 6,300 aeroplanes, the company said.
On programmes, the 737-7 received amended type certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the third quarter, and the 737-10 was certified in October. Production is moving towards a stabilised rate of 47 aeroplanes a month on the 737, while the 787 is stable at eight a month. First delivery of the 777-9 is still targeted for 2027, Boeing said.
Kelly Ortberg, Boeing’s president and chief executive, said: “But we are not done.” He said the company remains focused on safety and quality.
The S&P 500 gained 0.6% to 7,722.60 on the day, the Associated Press reported. Most stocks in the index fell, with gains in artificial intelligence companies offsetting the losses.
Other companies also reported on Tuesday. Hilton Worldwide fell 2.1% after weaker-than-expected summer revenue, and TheStreet said its Middle East and Africa revenue per available room fell 5.6%, while the US figure rose 7%. Hilton cited “increased impact from the Middle East” during the quarter, the Associated Press reported.
Sources and checks before publishing
General checks: I read the 23, 24, 26 and 27 October editions of this doc and did not repeat their stories. A search for radarr.africa returned nothing usable, so Tife should check the Radarr archive directly for the Dangote IPO (Nigeria 2, written as a closing development), the Kenya Pipeline Company (Africa 2) and Anthropic (Global 1). Datelines use LAGOS as requested. Word counts are around 450 to 650 per story; Nigeria 2, Nigeria 4 and Africa 3 are the shortest because the sources were thin, and Tife may want to add detail from a second source. Nothing was posted anywhere. Disclosure: Global 1 is about Anthropic, the company that makes Claude, which drafted this doc, so consider a disclosure line.
