Boeing Delivered 64 Jets in June. Here's What That Means for Its July 28 Earnings.

Boeing (NYSE: BA) delivered 64 commercial airplanes in June, bringing its second-quarter total to 171 jets and its first-half total to 314 -- the company's best first half since 2018. For a plane maker still working its way back to consistent profitability, that delivery pace is the single most important input into the second-quarter results Boeing will report on Tuesday, July 28.

Deliveries matter this much because of how Boeing gets paid. The company collects the bulk of an airplane's purchase price when it hands the jet to the customer, so every additional delivery brings in more cash.

The second quarter's 171 commercial deliveries included 129 737s and 25 787s. And output has been climbing for more than a year. Boeing delivered 130 airplanes in the first quarter of 2025, 143 in this year's first quarter, and now 171 in the second quarter.

Image source: Boeing.

The trend investors should care about

Boeing's first-quarter report showed why the ramp matters. Revenue rose 14% year over year to $22.2 billion.

The company's core (non-GAAP) loss per share narrowed to $0.20 from $0.49 a year earlier. And free cash flow, while still negative at $1.5 billion, was an improvement from a $2.3 billion outflow in the year-ago quarter.

Losses shrinking and cash flow improving, quarter after quarter, is the entire investment story here -- and it runs on deliveries.

The second quarter added 28 more deliveries than the first. If Boeing's per-plane economics held steady, that higher volume should translate into a smaller loss and better cash flow when the company reports.

Investors should also listen for any word on production rates. Boeing has been ramping up its 737 production to 47 jets per month, up from 42, with the concurrence of the Federal Aviation Administration. That higher rate raises the delivery ceiling for 2027 and beyond.

There's a backlog reason to care, too. Boeing ended the first quarter with a record $695 billion in total backlog, including more than 6,100 commercial airplanes. The company doesn't have a demand problem. It has a production problem, which is why every month of higher output works directly on the constraint that has been holding the business back.

Of course, a good report isn't guaranteed. Tariffs, supplier issues, or new charges on defense programs could still spoil the quarter, as such charges have in years past. But the delivery data is the best preview investors get ahead of the report, and it points in one direction.

Free cash flow is where the delivery ramp either shows up or doesn't. If Boeing posts a positive figure on July 28, its recovery story gets its proof.

Daniel Sparks and his clients do not have positions in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Boeing. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.