So, Boeing (BA) had a pretty good quarter. The aerospace giant reported its first-quarter results on Wednesday, and the numbers are telling a story of recovery—or at least, a story of things getting less bad. Revenue came in at $22.22 billion, which is up 14% from a year ago and better than the $21.78 billion analysts were expecting. The stock liked it, trading higher after the news.
Here's the part that really gets your attention: Boeing lost money, but not as much as everyone thought. The adjusted loss per share was 20 cents. That sounds rough until you realize Wall Street was bracing for an 84-cent loss. The GAAP loss was even narrower at 11 cents per share. Core operating earnings jumped 47% to $293 million, and the core operating margin improved to 1.3%. Not exactly printing money, but moving in the right direction. The company delivered 143 commercial planes, which helped.
Now, the cash flow situation is still a work in progress. Operating cash flow was negative $0.2 billion, and the non-GAAP free cash flow was negative $1.5 billion. Cash and marketable securities dropped to $20.9 billion from $29.4 billion at the start of the quarter, mostly because Boeing paid down some debt and used cash. Total debt stands at $47.2 billion. But here's the big headline: Boeing's total backlog—all the orders it has in the pipeline—hit a record $695 billion. That's a lot of future business.
Breaking it down by segment, the Commercial Airplanes division saw revenue rise 13% to $9.2 billion. The operating margin was still negative at (6.1)%, but deliveries were up 10% to 143 aircraft. They booked 140 net orders, including deals with Aviation Capital Group, Delta Air Lines (DAL), and Air India. The backlog here is now over 6,100 airplanes valued at a record $576 billion. Production-wise, the 737 program is making 42 planes a month, and the 787 is stabilizing at eight per month. Looking ahead, Boeing expects to get the 737-7 and 737-10 certified in 2026, with first deliveries in 2027, and the 777X should also make its first delivery in 2027.
Over in Defense, Space & Security, things are looking up. Revenue grew 21% to $7.6 billion, and the operating margin improved to 3.1% thanks to higher volume and more stable operations. They locked in a seven-year PAC-3 Seeker agreement and expanded their partnership with Rheinmetall. The backlog here reached a record $86 billion.
The Global Services segment posted a 6% revenue increase to $5.4 billion, with a healthy operating margin of 18.1%. That growth came from higher government volume and the impact of selling off the Digital Aviation Solutions business. They ended the quarter with a record backlog of $33 billion and secured a Landing Gear Exchange Program deal with Singapore Airlines Group.
CEO Kelly Ortberg summed it up: "We're building on our momentum with a strong start to the year and growing record-breaking backlog across our business, while supporting our customers with inspiring missions like Artemis II." Boeing says it's ramping up production while keeping a focus on safety and quality. Shares were up about 2.93% at $225.58 when the numbers came out.
