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Boeing Declines 9.2% in Three Months: Should Investors Worry?

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Key Takeaways

  • Boeing shares fell 9.2% in three months, underperforming its industry's 5.6% decline.
  • BA faces delays, cancellations, and $11.09B in lost orders amid supply-chain and trade pressures.
  • BA sees EPS estimates cut 26.25% and reports negative ROIC, signaling weak returns on investments.

The Boeing Company’s (BA - Free Report) shares have lost 9.2% in three months compared with the Zacks Aerospace-Defense industry’s decline of 5.6%. The company’s commercial aircraft business is facing pressure from production delays, order cancellations, trade tensions, and supply-chain constraints despite growing air travel demand.
 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Shares of other defense stocks, such as RTX Corporation (RTX - Free Report) and Lockheed Martin (LMT - Free Report) , have gained 5% and 14%, respectively, during the same time frame. RTX continues to receive ample orders for its wide range of combat-proven defense products from the Pentagon and its foreign allies. Lockheed Martin’s broad capabilities continue to drive major contract wins, reinforcing its backlog count.

Considering Boeing’s underperformance relative to its industry, investors may be wondering what their next step should be. Let’s examine the key factors and assess the stock’s investment prospects to make an informed decision.

Challenges Confronting BA

While Boeing presents strong growth potential, it also faces several key challenges that investors should weigh carefully. Although the commercial aerospace market has been benefiting from steady growth in air travel in recent times, persistent supply-chain issues, particularly arising from a shortage of aircraft parts, continue to affect the global aviation industry. This, in turn, poses a grave risk for aircraft manufacturers like Boeing.

Slow production, delayed deliveries and ongoing inspections have likely affected customer sentiment for Boeing’s commercial airplanes, leading to recent order cancellations. During 2025, aircraft order cancellations totaled $11.09 billion, mainly for 777X, 737, and 787 models, which impacted the revenue potential of the Boeing Commercial Airplanes (“BCA”) segment. Ongoing trade tensions between the United States and China pose another challenge. Any escalation in these disputes could delay deliveries, hurt BCA’s revenues, and increase inventory costs.

Heightened U.S. tariffs on imported goods may worsen global supply-chain disruptions for Boeing. As steel and aluminum are critical inputs for aircraft manufacturing, higher tariffs could raise input costs for jet makers that rely on imported high-quality materials. Limited near-term availability of these metals from domestic sources may constrain production, potentially delaying aircraft programs and deliveries. Together, higher costs and material shortages could pressure Boeing’s manufacturing timelines and weigh on its financial performance.

Factors Acting in Favor of BA

Boeing remains one of the largest aircraft manufacturers in the United States in terms of revenues, orders and deliveries, particularly in the commercial aerospace industry. Supported by steadily growing demand in the commercial aerospace market, the company, a leading jet manufacturer, has been witnessing strong delivery and order activity.

In April 2026, Boeing and the U.S. Department of Defense agreed to a seven-year framework to triple production of PAC-3 seekers to meet growing global demand for air and missile defense systems that protect service members, civilians, and critical infrastructure. Boeing has invested more than $200 million since 2024 to expand PAC-3 seeker production capacity in Huntsville, AL, including a 35,000-square-foot facility expansion. The framework provides stability to address rising demand while enabling additional cash-neutral investments by Boeing across the production value chain.

Estimates for BA Stock

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings per share (EPS) has decreased 26.25% in the past 60 days. 
 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RTX’s 2026 EPS has remained unchanged over the past 60 days. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Lockheed Martin’s 2026 EPS has increased 0.4% in the past 60 days.  

BA’s Earnings Surprise History

The company beat on earnings in two of the trailing four quarters and missed in the other two, delivering an average negative surprise of 80.4%.

 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

BA Stock’s Poor ROIC

The image below shows that BA stock’s trailing 12-month return on invested capital (ROIC) not only lags the peer group’s average return but also reflects a negative figure. This suggests that the company's investments are not yielding sufficient returns to cover its expenses.

 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

BA Stock Trades at a Discount

In terms of valuation, Boeing’s forward 12-month price-to-sales (P/S) is 1.71X, a discount to the industry’s average of 2.46X. This suggests that investors will be paying a lower price than the company's expected sales growth compared with that of its peer group.

 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

What Should an Investor Do Now?

The company has been experiencing solid order and delivery momentum, which has boosted its performance. However, it faces supply-chain disruptions, parts shortages, and production delays, leading to order cancellations and weaker customer sentiment. Rising tariffs and U.S.-China trade tensions may further increase costs, delay deliveries, and pressure revenues and overall financial performance.

Given its negative earnings growth projection, recent challenges and poor ROIC, investors should avoid the stock currently. BA has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
 

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