Boeing narrowed its third-quarter loss after defense sales rose, but CEO Kelly Ortberg told staff the manufacturer has “more work to do.” Here’s what Boeing reported for the third quarter compared to what Wall Street analysts expected, based on LSEG consensus estimates: Loss per share: Adjusted 34 cents vs. an expected loss of 21 cents Revenue: $24.19 billion expected vs. $23.84 billion expected. For the three months ending in September. On Jan. 30, Boeing reported a net loss of $116 million, or 26 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5.34 billion, or $7.14 per share, a year earlier. Adjusting for extraordinary items, the company reported a loss of 34 cents per share. A year earlier, Boeing had taken a nearly $5 billion charge for its delayed 777X aircraft program. Revenue rose 4% year-over-year to $24.19 billion. Free cash flow increased to $464 million from $238 million in the third quarter of 2025. Revenue from the company’s defense unit rose 15% in the third quarter from a year earlier to $7.94 billion. Boeing delivered 161 commercial airplanes in the third quarter, one more plane than a year earlier. Revenue in the important commercial aircraft business fell 3% to $10.72 billion. The unit had a negative operating margin of 6.5% due to a “less favorable delivery mix, higher projected costs associated with future production rate adjustments and higher estimated supply chain costs,” Boeing said. Executives at the plane maker are set to update investors on how quickly it can ramp up aircraft production in the coming months when it holds a quarterly earnings call on Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. ET. Boeing has been producing about 47 of its 737 Max planes a month, but is aiming for more. CEO Kelly Ortberg told investors last month that production is taking “a little longer” than expected to stabilize, and that the company hopes to increase aircraft production next year. “Looking ahead, expectations are rising, and they should be,” Ortberg said in a note to staff Tuesday. “That means elevating our performance through efficiency, productivity and efficiency improvements in our daily work, while maintaining our high levels of safety and quality.” Aircraft production and delivery are key to Boeing’s recovery, since most of the price of a plane is paid when the customer receives it. But the manufacturer has scored some victories lately. The US Navy turned to Boeing to develop its next-generation fighter jet. And the Federal Aviation Administration last week approved the 737 Max 10, the largest in the Max family. This followed the approval of the 737 Max 7 in August and marked the final certifications for the aircraft line.
