Hope springs eternal in the human breast; just ask anyone who still expects big things out of aerospace stock Boeing (BA). But new reports have emerged saying just who will land the first Boeing 777X aircraft, and start operating the new plane as part of its fleet. The news proved welcome to investors, as shares were up nearly 2.5% in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
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The first airline to get its hands on a 777X, more specifically a 777-9, will be Lufthansa. The Dutch airline will thus have a role to play in aviation history. Many thought that the first plane would go to Emirates, considering how much history the two have together. But ultimately, Lufthansa won out, and will be the first airline to host one of Boeing’s new jets.
Lufthansa has already put in quite an order for the planes too, reports note, as its order book has a whopping 27 777X models in place. Some of them will be the 777-9 jets, while others will be 777-8 freighter jets. Sources were unclear on just how many of each Lufthansa has already booked. However, reports also emerged that Boeing has a demand for 481 such aircraft from 13 different customers, as well as from some “unidentified customers.”
Moving Right Along
Those hoping to get hands on a Dreamliner this year, meanwhile, have some mixed news ahead. Boeing has restarted its deliveries of the aircraft, and has been doing so since last August, reports noted. In fact, Lufthansa got the first one of those too. But other orders may not have so long to wait, as Boeing expects to roll out between 75 and 80 Dreamliner aircraft this year.
Boeing hopes to roll out seven of the new Dreamliners monthly through the rest of this year, up from the five that it rolled out previously. This may be a bit too ambitious of a target, though, as many of the supply chain issues that hindered Boeing production in the past are still in play, reports noted. But even seven Dreamliners is still just half of the rate Boeing rolled out in 2019, when it put out 14 a month.
Is Boeing a Good Stock to Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on BA stock based on 13 Buys, five Holds and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 15.63% loss in its share price over the past year, the average BA price target of $190.50 per share implies 9.78% upside potential.
