Boeing Will Close 2017 as Top DJIA Stock

By Paul Ausick Updated Jan 12, 5:09AM EST · Published Dec 23, 9:40AM EST

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Boeing Will Close 2017 as Top DJIA Stock — © courtesy of Boeing Co.

Boeing Co.’s (NYSE: BA) share price added less than half a point last week but it was not for lack of good news. With just a week to go in 2017, the aerospace giant is a sure thing to close out the year as the best performing stock among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). Shares gained $1.76 last week to boost the year-to-date gain to nearly 90%.

Of the three other Dow stocks closest to Boeing’s yearly gain, Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) rose by about 6.2% to a gain of nearly 68% for the year, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) added about 0.6% to close the week up just over 51% for the year to date, and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) dropped about 1% to lower its annual gain to just over 44%.

Boeing’s week began with a final determination from the U.S. Department of Commerce on Boeing’s complaint against Canadian aircraft maker Bombardier for dumping the company’s CS-100 at below cost in the United States. The agency reiterated its 300% duty on imported Bombardier planes seating 100 to 150 passengers.

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) will now rule on whether Boeing was harmed by Bombardier’s sale. If not, the complaint and the tariff disappear unless Boeing appeals. If the ITC does conclude that the sale harmed Boeing, Bombardier’s CS-100 planes imported into the United States will be charged the duty fees. Bombardier will certainly appeal.

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On Thursday Boeing signed a firm order with UAE-based flydubai airlines for 175 of the company’s 737 MAX jets. The airline committed to the order at the Dubai Air Show last month, but the firm order adds the planes to Boeing’s backlog.

Boeing also confirmed on Thursday that it has discussed a “possible combination” with Brazil’s Embraer S.A. (NYSE: ERJ), a response to the deal Bombardier struck with Airbus in which the European company took control of Bombardier’s C Series program. A deal between Boeing and Embraer is no sure thing, mainly because the Brazilian government holds a controlling interest in Embraer.

On Friday, Boeing announced that it has sold a KC-46 refueling tanker to Japan on fixed-price contract valued at $279 million. This could be a big deal because it is the first KC-46 Boeing has sold to a non-U.S. buyer.

The U.S. Air Force also awarded Boeing a contract to sell 36 F-15 fighter jets to Qatar in a deal worth $6.1 billion. The sale had originally been set at 72 aircraft with a contract value of more than $21 billion.

Boeing stock closed at $295.10 on Friday, up less than 0.1% on the day, in a 52-week trading range of $154.96 to $97.37. The high was posted Friday morning. The 12-month consensus price target is $299.33, down about $7.80 from last week’s target. The low price target is $203 and the high is $350.

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About the Author Paul Ausick →

Paul Ausick has been writing for a673b.bigscoots-temp.com for more than a decade. He has written extensively on investing in the energy, defense, and technology sectors. In a previous life, he wrote technical documentation and managed a marketing communications group in Silicon Valley.

He has a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Chicago and now lives in Montana, where he fishes for trout in the summer and stays inside during the winter.