Penalty Box? Buy Boeing Stock Now, Says Citi.

Coming into Friday trading, Boeing stock was down 20% this year. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Key Points

Citi analyst John Godyn recommended that clients buy Boeing stock, calling current share levels attractive despite disappointing third-quarter earnings.
Boeing reported a third-quarter loss of 34 cents per share and delayed its $10 billion annual free cash flow guidance from 2028 to 2029.
Godyn set a $260 price target for Boeing, representing over 50% upside, and placed a 90-day positive catalyst watch on the stock.

Boeing delivered sorely disappointing third-quarter earnings earlier this week, slashing guidance for long-awaited free cash flow.

A quarter like that can put a stock in the penalty box. Citi analyst John Godyn, however, sees current levels as too attractive. He’s telling Citi clients to buy Boeing stock right now.

On Tuesday, Boeing reported a third-quarter loss of 34 cents per share, missing Wall Street estimates by a few pennies. Shares dropped 11%. The miss wasn’t the problem. Instead, Boeing shifted its guidance for $10 billion in annual free cash flow from 2028 to 2029. The company is struggling to boost production of its 737 MAX jets.

Boeing hasn’t generated substantial free cash flow since 2018, the year before the second tragic 737 MAX crash, which grounded that jet worldwide for almost two years while Boeing worked to fix faulty flight control software.

Years of reduced production and no earnings have battered Boeing stock. Shares were north of $440 in early 2019. They were $240 in early 2026, with investors laser-focused on the 2028 free cash flow number.

But with shares down roughly 30% from a 52-week high of $254.35, now is a good time to get back in, according to Godyn.

“We believe newly reset [cash flow] expectations now form the foundation of a rally into 2027,” he wrote in a Thursday evening report. Cash flow is a timing issue for him. Godyn still projects $15 billion in 2030 free cash flow. “The stock is attractively valued and we can make the case for plus 50% upside from current levels to our price target of $260.”

He put a 90-day positive catalyst watch on Boeing stock. A catalyst watch means he sees shares moving soon. Things that will get shares moving are improving delivery rates. What’s more, Boeing stock typically does well in November and December.

It’s a bold call, but not an out of consensus call. Wall Street remains supportive. Overall, 88% of analysts covering the stock rate shares Buy. The average Buy-rating ratio for S&P 500 stocks typically ranges from 55% to 60%.

The average analyst price target for Boeing stock is about $233 a share, up 35% from recent levels. The average price target, however, is down about $30 since Boeing’s third-quarter earnings report.

Boeing stock was down 0.9% in early trading Friday at $171.15, while S&P 500 futures were off 1.1%.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@barrons.com.

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