The Boeing Co. BA is set to release fourth-quarter and full-year 2017 results before the opening bell on Jan 31.
The company’s results in the to-be-reported quarter are anticipated to be primarily driven by constant contract wins along with higher jet deliveries. Meanwhile a solid cash generating capability also boosts this aerospace giant’s growth.
Let's take a detailed look at the factors influencing Boeing’s quarterly results.
Slew of Contract Wins — Key Catalyst
Being largest aircraft manufacturer and one of the largest aerospace and defense contractors in the United States, Boeing enjoys a solid inflow of contracts from both Pentagon as well as foreign allies, courtesy its varied product offerings.
Markedly, the company received a number of big orders for its commercial jets in the fourth quarter including a $27-billion order from flydubai for 225 737 MAX jets and an $11-billion contract from Avolon for 75 737-MAX airplanes. Again, it sealed a deal worth $15.1 billion for delivering 40 787-10 Dreamliners to Emirates.
Among the defense contracts won in the fourth quarter, the significant ones include a $6-billion deal for procuring 36 F-15QA aircraft for the Qatar Emiri Air Force. Boeing also clinched a contract worth $1.2-billion modification contract for manufacturing and delivering 10 full-rate production P-8A aircraft. The company won a contract worth $240 million for the Royal Saudi Air Force airborne warning and control system (AWACS) modernization program phase 1.
Thus, it goes without saying that such steady inflow of contract wins will surely boost Boeing’s quarterly sales. Evidently, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company’s fourth-quarter sales is pegged at $24.83 billion, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 6.6%.
Such improving top line indicates at solid bottom-line growth for the company. In line with this, the consensus estimate for the company’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at $2.91 per share, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 17.8%.
Impressive Q4 Orders & Deliveries
Boeing’s fourth-quarter deliveries showed a 12.8% improvement year over year in commercial shipments. Also, defense shipments improved 7% than the year-ago figure. Higher demand for the 737 and 767 jets primarily drove the year-over-year improvement in commercial deliveries. In the last quarter, the company delivered 209 airplanes.
In the defense and space business, Boeing’s deliveries totaled 43 in the fourth quarter compared with 40 in the year-ago quarter.
Boeing Company (The) Price and EPS Surprise
Boeing Company (The) Price and EPS Surprise | Boeing Company (The) Quote
Dividend Hike: A Strong Positive
Boeing’s strong cash generating capability provides the company with financial flexibility, which in turn allows it to hike dividend significantly and repurchase shares, thereby making the stock a valuable choice for investors. Notably, its cash and investments in marketable securities was $10.03 billion at the end of the third quarter. During the first nine months of 2017, Boeing paid $2.58 billion in dividends and repurchased 39.5 million shares for $7.5 billion.
Last month, the company increased its quarterly dividend by 20.4%. Impressively, Boeing has increased its dividend per share by more than 250% over the last five years. Along with the dividend hike, the company authorized a new stock repurchase plan of $18 billion, which replaces the existing share-buyback program.
The raised dividend and the new buyback authorization indicate Boeing’s optimism on solid cash inflow that is further supported by its large and diverse order backlog. We expect the company’s yet-to-be reported results to reflect huge backlog for its jets, both defense and commercial.
What the Zacks Model Unveils
Our proven model shows that Boeing is likely to beat earnings this quarter. For this to happen, a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Well, Boeing possesses the right combination currently, as the Zacks Rank #2 company has Earnings ESP of +0.25%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Please note that we caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Sell-rated) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.
Stocks That Warrant a Look
Here are a few stocks in the Aerospace and Defense space worth considering on the basis of our model which shows that they have the right combination to pull off a beat:
Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. SPR is expected to report fourth quarter 2017 results on Feb 2. The company has an Earnings ESP of +0.09% and a Zacks Rank #1.
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. HII is expected to report fourth-quarter 2017 results on Feb 15. The company has an Earnings ESP of +3.43% and a Zacks Rank #2.
Lockheed Martin Corp. LMT is expected to report fourth-quarter 2017 results on Jan 29. The company has an Earnings ESP of +0.31% and a Zacks Rank #2.
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