Boeing Co. expects to generate cash on an annual basis in 2026, marking a significant turnaround in the planemaker’s finances as it prepares to boost monthly production rates and pushes ahead with certification for the much-delayed 777X jetliner.
The US company expects positive free cash flow to reach the “low-single digits” next year, reversing the $2 billion cash burn seen for 2025, said Chief Financial Officer Jay Malave, in his first solo presentation at an investor conference since being named to the post in August.
The assurances propelled Boeing’s shares before the start of regular trading in New York, with the stock gaining as much as 4%. Malave’s comments provided the first detailed look at the planemaker’s cash projections for 2026, a year when Boeing’s comeback should start to gain momentum if jet deliveries keep rising while factories and the supply chain stabilize.
Longer term, the company still expects to eventually reach the $10 billion cash generation target outlined by the previous management team, Malave said. He cited a steadily improving production cadence in Boeing’s factories, especially for its 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner jets, and the reduction of its inventory of undelivered aircraft as reasons for optimism, alongside an improving business at its defense and services operations.
Analysts expect Boeing to generate $2.46 billion in free cash flow next year, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That would be an improvement from the cumulative $2.25 billion cash outflow recorded during the first nine months of this year.
Still, analysts have pared their free cash flow predictions by more than half since mid-July, according to those estimates. That’s after Boeing’s revelation that it faced further delays on its 777X, pushing its largest in-production jet more than seven years behind schedule to 2027.
