Boeing stock falls nearly 11%, worst day since 2020, as 737 Max ramp slips to late 2027

Boeing shares had a rough Tuesday. The stock fell nearly 11%, its worst day since June 2020, according to Yahoo Finance. It also closed at its lowest level since April 2025 and hit a new 52-week low. Boeing’s third-quarter results looked mixed on paper, but the drop got worse during the earnings call, when the company said a key 737 Max production increase won’t come until the second half of 2027.

This article is for information only and is not financial advice.

The quarter in numbers

Here’s what Boeing reported for the three months ended Sept. 30, with analyst expectations from LSEG consensus as reported by CNBC:

A year earlier, Boeing lost $5.34 billion, or $7.14 a share. That loss included a nearly $5 billion charge on the delayed 777X program, CNBC noted.

The weak spot: commercial airplanes

Boeing’s commercial jet unit continues to struggle:

• Commercial revenue fell 3% to $10.72 billion, and the unit had a negative 6.5% operating margin, CNBC reported.
• Boeing blamed a less favorable delivery mix, higher expected costs tied to future production-rate changes and higher supply chain costs.
• The unit lost about $700 million, roughly twice the forecast, according to Yahoo Finance. Investing.com put the operating loss at $697 million.
• Boeing delivered 161 commercial planes in the quarter, one more than a year earlier.

Why the stock fell so hard

Timing was the bigger problem. CEO Kelly Ortberg said Boeing is targeting 52 737 Max jets a month in the second half of 2027, up from about 47 now. He said wing production is moving more slowly than expected. According to Yahoo Finance, Boeing also expects to finish this year about 500 short on 737 deliveries, and engine supply is now limiting how fast it can build 787s.

“I know everybody wants us to go faster, but we’re going to do it right,” Ortberg told CNBC.

Deliveries matter a lot for Boeing, because customers pay most of a plane’s price when they take delivery. Investing.com reported that the stock was down only about 1.8% in morning trading. Yahoo Finance said the sell-off deepened as the production plans were laid out on the call.

The bright spots

• Defense: Defense revenue jumped 15% to $7.94 billion, CNBC reported.
• Backlog: Total backlog hit a record $745 billion, including more than 6,300 jets.
• Certifications: Last week the FAA signed off on the 737 Max 10, following the Max 7 in August. That completes certification for the 737 Max family.
• Navy fighter: The U.S. Navy recently picked Boeing to develop its next-generation fighter jet.

What analysts are watching

Yahoo Finance noted that the commercial jet business has made money in just one of the past 18 quarters. Analysts still expect it to get close to break-even by early 2027, but that now depends on a slower ramp. JPMorgan’s Seth Seifman wrote that the unit’s margin came in about 280 basis points light because of cost growth. Before the report, Bernstein’s Douglas Harned had cut his price target to $278 from $298 but kept a Buy rating, Investing.com reported.

Next up are Boeing’s October delivery numbers, due in November. They should show whether the 737 line is holding at 47 a month.

FAQ