EVERETT – Fueled by 787 jet orders and positive airline forecasts, the Boeing Co.’s stock soared Wednesday to a record high close of $93.88.
The Chicago-based Boeing helped stir a rally of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which moved above 12,800 for the first time Wednesday. Boeing’s stock traded as high as $94.17, surpassing a 52-week high of $92.24 in midday trading. The company’s previous record high close was $91.71 on Feb. 15, 2007.
The Dow industrials gained 30 points, making a bullish recovery from negative morning trading. The record close signaled a full rebound from a dramatic drop at the end of February.
Boeing’s stock began the day at $90.45, jumping 3.8 percent over the course of trading.
The $93.88 close represents a significant increase in Boeing’s stock over the past several years. On the same day last year, the planemaker’s stock closed at $83.30, up from $56.92 in 2005. Just four years ago, on April 17, 2003, Boeing’s stock sat at $26.45.
Last week, Boeing posted a request from an unidentified customer for 30 of its 787s on the company’s order Web site. The deal is worth up to $4.7 billion at list prices. Boeing spokesman Peter Conte said the customer would go public with its order in the coming weeks or months.
Three Dreamliner customers – All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines and Australia’s Qantas – also have dibs on 30 or more 787 jets. Japan’s ANA has more Dreamliners on order than any other 787 customer with requests for 30 787-3s and 20 787-8s.
Since its launch, the Dreamliner has won roughly 544 orders from about 40 customers across the globe before its scheduled roll out in Everett this July. The 787 has sold quickly despite a scarcity of orders from major U.S. and European carriers, adding further speculation over the 30-plane order.
Northwest and Continental are the only two U.S. airlines to order Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. Boeing officials have said they anticipate that U.S. legacy carriers will begin updating their fleets in 2007 or 2008.
“I think there’s a feeling that U.S. carriers are coming back,” said Richard Aboulafia, an industry analyst.
Europe’s British Airways plans to expand its fleet soon and is considering Boeing’s 787 as well as Airbus’ A350 Extra Wide Body jet.
On Wednesday, two potential Dreamliner customers, American Airlines and Lufthansa, reported strong results for the first quarter of 2007 and for 2006 respectively.
Wolfgang Mayrhuber, the CEO of German carrier Lufthansa, said he’s confident the company will reach its 2007 and 2008 targets. Lufthansa also is considering buying up smaller carriers.
In the first quarter of 2007, the parent company of American Airlines, AMR Corp. posted a profit of $81 million. That’s an $173 million improvement over the $92 million loss the company reported in the first quarter of 2006.
“As we continue to execute our turnaround plan, we are seeking to strike the right balance between reinvestment in the business and the need for further financial improvement,” said Gerard Arpey, AMR chairman and CEO.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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