Boeing sinks to loss on $4.5-billion charge due to 787 delivery delay

Boeing said on Wednesday it incurred $4.5 billion charges in the fourth quarter on its sidelined 787 program, obscuring the US planemaker's long-awaited return to positive cash flow fueled by rebounding 737 MAX deliveries.

The company's shares fell 0.3% in premarket trading as the planemaker sank to a loss after two quarters of profits because of the charge.

The mixed quarterly results underscore the challenges Boeing faces as it seeks to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic and 737 MAX safety crises, while navigating industrial and regulatory currents on its bigger 787 and 777X flagship.

Reuters reported last week that deliveries of the 787 are expected to remain frozen for months as US regulators review repairs and inspections over structural flaws in the jets, while designs for the larger 777X face further regulatory pushback from Europe.

"While we never want to disappoint our customers or miss expectations, the work we're putting in now will build stability and predictability going forward," Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun told employees in a memo seen by Reuters.

Calhoun stopped short of saying when deliveries of 787 would resume. 

Boeing unveiled a $3.5 billion pre-tax non-cash charge related to 787 delivery delays and customer concessions, and another $1 billion in abnormal production costs. Boeing had previously forecast low production rates and rework for the 787 to result in about $1 billion of abnormal costs.

The company reported a core operating loss of $4.54 billion in the fourth quarter ended December 31, compared with a loss of $8.38 billion a year earlier, when the company recorded a $6.5 billion charge due to delays in its 777X jet program.