Boeing (BA) Slides After the Bell on December 9: Deliveries, Spirit Deal and Ghost Bat

Boeing Company (The) (NYSE: BA) ended Tuesday, December 9, 2025 under pressure, with the stock giving back part of last week’s big rally just as the company closed its long‑awaited Spirit AeroSystems acquisition and reported mixed November delivery numbers.

Shares fell roughly 2.8% to trade around $200.5 during the regular session, after dipping as low as about $200.02 intraday, on volume slightly above average. In extended trading around 6:30 p.m. ET, Boeing stock was little changed, hovering near $200.7. ^[1]

At the same time, Boeing announced a milestone autonomous missile test for its MQ‑28 “Ghost Bat” drone, and the broader airline industry received a bullish profit outlook from IATA that explicitly highlighted improved confidence in Boeing’s ability to deliver planes. ^[2]

Here’s what moved Boeing stock after the bell on December 9, 2025, and the key catalysts to watch before the market opens on December 10.

Note: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

Boeing Stock on December 9: Big Down Day After a Big Up Week

Price action and volume

According to MarketBeat’s real‑time data, Boeing shares: ^[3]

Previous close (Dec 8): about $206.27
Dec 9 regular close: around $200.5, a drop of roughly 2.8%
Intraday low: about $200.02
Volume: roughly 9.1 million shares, around 8% above recent average
After‑hours (≈6:27 p.m. ET): about $200.66, up a touch from the close

Despite Tuesday’s pullback, Boeing remains solidly positive for 2025: MarketBeat’s performance table shows a year‑to‑date gain of ~13% and a 12‑month gain of about 28% as of December 9. ^[4]

In other words, today looked less like a catastrophe and more like a sharp pause after a powerful rebound. Remember that on December 2, shares jumped roughly 10% in a single day after CFO Jay Malave told investors he expects higher 737 and 787 deliveries and a return to positive free cash flow next year, reversing this year’s ~$2 billion cash burn. ^[5]

So what knocked the stock lower on December 9? Two main things:

Softer November deliveries than investors hoped for
Ongoing concerns about execution and integration, even as Boeing closes the Spirit AeroSystems deal

Let’s unpack those.

November Deliveries: The Data Behind Tuesday’s Sell‑Off

The biggest near‑term headline for Boeing on December 9 was its November 2025 orders and deliveries update, which came in a bit shy of the bullish narrative that had been building since the CFO’s upbeat comments last week.

Deliveries down month‑on‑month and trailing Airbus

Boeing reported that in November it: ^[6]

Delivered 44 jets, down from 53 in October – a 17% month‑on‑month drop
Delivered:
- 32 single‑aisle 737 MAX jets
- 6 787 Dreamliners (including two 787‑10s to TAAG Angola Airlines)
- 2 777 freighters (to Turkish Airlines and Aerotranscargo)
- 4 767s

By comparison, European rival Airbus delivered 72 aircraft in November, widening the monthly delivery gap in its favor. ^[7]

Deliveries are crucial for Boeing because revenue and cash flow are recognized when aircraft are handed over, not when orders are signed. So a 17% month‑on‑month decline naturally worries traders who just spent the previous week bidding the stock up on hopes of a stronger 2026 cash‑flow profile.

Orders strong, but timing matters

The delivery disappointment came with very healthy demand numbers:

164 gross orders
38 cancellations
126 net new orders in November ^[8]

Key highlights included:

74 orders for the long‑delayed 777X wide‑body jet, including 65 from Emirates and 9 from China Airlines.
30 orders for the 787, including 15 for Gulf Air and several for other international carriers.
43 orders for the 737 MAX, all from undisclosed buyers.
Additional orders for KC‑46 tankers and 777 freighters. ^[9]

Through November 30, Boeing had: ^[10]

Delivered 537 aircraft in 2025
Logged 1,000 gross orders and 908 net orders after cancellations
Built up a backlog of about 6,019 jets

So the long‑term story is still one of strong demand. The problem, from the market’s point of view, is that monthly deliveries keep wobbling while Airbus still out‑delivers Boeing, even though Airbus itself has had to trim its 2025 delivery target by about 4% due to its own industrial issues. ^[11]

Production pace vs. safety and regulation

MarketMinute’s analysis of the November data pointed out that Boeing: ^[12]

Produced 32 737 MAX aircraft in November, still below the FAA‑approved rate of 42 per month.
Is taking a deliberately cautious approach before accelerating to higher production rates, given intense regulatory scrutiny after past safety incidents.

That caution is understandable from a safety and quality standpoint – and regulators clearly expect it – but it also slows the revenue ramp investors were hoping to see after Malave’s December 2 optimism about next year’s cash flow.

Put bluntly:

Demand isn’t the problem. Execution speed is.

And that’s exactly the tension traders were repricing into Boeing stock on December 9.

Spirit AeroSystems Deal: A Big Structural Fix With Near‑Term Integration Risk

The other structural story that shaped Tuesday’s trading is Boeing’s now‑completed acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems – historically a key supplier for 737 fuselages and other major structures.

Deal finally closes

On December 8, Boeing formally completed its acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems, paying about $4.7 billion in equity and assuming roughly $4 billion of Spirit’s debt, for a total transaction value of around $8.3 billion. ^[13]

According to Boeing’s own release and follow‑up industry coverage, the deal: ^[14]

Brings all Boeing‑related commercial operations in‑house, including:
- 737 fuselages
- Major structures for the 767, 777 and 787
- Fuselages for P‑8 and KC‑46 military aircraft
Adds Spirit’s aftermarket and spare‑parts business to Boeing Global Services
Transfers about 15,000 Spirit employees in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma and Scotland into Boeing
Spins parts of Spirit’s Belfast operations into a Boeing subsidiary branded Short Brothers, a Boeing Company

AP noted that this effectively reverses Boeing’s 2005 outsourcing decision and is being framed by CEO Kelly Ortberg as a “pivotal moment” aimed at improving stability, quality and safety after years of supply‑chain and quality problems at Spirit. ^[15]

Regulatory strings attached

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission approved the deal but required Boeing to divest certain Spirit operations that supply Airbus and other competitors, including a major facility in Subang, Malaysia, and to maintain Spirit as a supplier for rival defense programs. The order also imposes dual monitors – one for the FTC and one representing the Pentagon – to oversee implementation. ^[16]

Those conditions are meant to prevent Boeing from locking up critical aerostructures capacity to the detriment of Airbus and other manufacturers, and they add compliance complexity as Boeing integrates Spirit.

Why the market is cautious

From a strategic perspective, analysts broadly see the Spirit deal as a long‑term positive: it gives Boeing more control over a bottleneck that has repeatedly derailed its delivery schedules. But as MarketMinute and other commentary have pointed out, that fix comes with: ^[17]

Integration costs and distractions
The need to clean up Spirit’s quality issues inside Boeing’s own house
Short‑term margin pressure as operations are restructured

So on a day when November deliveries already looked soft, the market’s view seemed to be:

“Yes, Spirit is the right strategic move… but it won’t rescue next quarter’s delivery numbers.”

That combination helped turn Boeing into one of the Dow’s weaker names on December 9.

Defense Momentum: Ghost Bat’s Breakthrough and a Big Australian Contract

While commercial headlines weighed on the stock, Boeing’s defense franchise quietly put up a potentially game‑changing milestone.

First autonomous air‑to‑air missile engagement

On December 9, Boeing and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) announced that the MQ‑28 “Ghost Bat” – a collaborative combat drone – had: ^[18]

Fired an AIM‑120 AMRAAM missile
Autonomously shot down a fighter‑class target drone
Done so as part of a teamed mission with a crewed E‑7A Wedgetail and F/A‑18F Super Hornet

Boeing described it as the first time an autonomous aircraft has completed an air‑to‑air engagement with an AIM‑120, showcasing an end‑to‑end “crewed‑uncrewed” teaming concept that’s central to future air combat doctrines.

Multiple defense outlets emphasized that this demo validates Boeing’s mission autonomy software and open‑architecture approach and moves Ghost Bat closer to operational status in allied air forces. ^[19]

New Australian funding and production ramp

The test wasn’t just for show. The Australian government followed up with fresh money:

Local reporting indicates Canberra has approved a new Ghost Bat tranche worth roughly A$750 million to A$1 billion, adding six to seven aircraft to earlier orders and targeting a fleet of about 18 MQ‑28s. ^[20]
Production will be centered around a new facility near Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport, expected to support 100+ jobs over the next decade as the plant ramps up. ^[21]

Benzinga noted that Boeing shares were “little changed” on the Ghost Bat news, suggesting investors still see it as a long‑cycle story rather than an immediate earnings driver. ^[22]

However, for anyone watching Boeing’s Defense, Space & Security segment, Ghost Bat is another proof‑point that the company remains competitive in next‑generation air combat systems, complementing its large backlogs in tankers, trainers and classified programs.

Industry Tailwinds: IATA Puts Boeing Back in the “Trusted Supplier” Column

The macro backdrop for Boeing’s customers – the world’s airlines – also improved on December 9.

Record airline profits forecast

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released a fresh outlook projecting that global airlines are on track to earn a record ~$41 billion in net profit in 2026, despite ongoing supply‑chain constraints and delayed aircraft deliveries. ^[23]

The report highlights:

Strong passenger demand
Tight capacity due to delayed jets, which supports fares
Ongoing issues with engine supplies and Airbus quality problems that forced Airbus to cut its 2025 delivery target by ~4% ^[24]

For Boeing, profitable airlines with constrained capacity usually mean continued appetite for new, fuel‑efficient aircraft – a long‑term positive for its massive backlog.

IATA chief: confidence in Boeing improving, Airbus slipping

Separate remarks from IATA’s Director General Willie Walsh were especially notable for Boeing investors. Speaking in Geneva, Walsh said that: ^[25]

Confidence in Boeing’s delivery performance has “significantly improved”, with airlines increasingly trusting Boeing to meet its commitments.
Confidence in Airbus has weakened, as the European manufacturer struggles more to hit its delivery targets.

He cautioned that overall aircraft deliveries will still come in below what airlines hoped for, but the directional change in sentiment – after years where Boeing was the one under intense skepticism – is an important narrative shift.

In simple terms:

Airlines still want more planes than they can get, but for the first time in a while, Boeing is no longer seen as the clearly weaker link.

Wall Street View: Moderate Buy, With a Wide Spread of Targets

While traders reacted to the November data with a one‑day sell‑off, analyst sentiment remains mixed‑positive.

Ratings and price targets

MarketBeat’s summary for BA as of December 9 shows: ^[26]

Consensus rating: “Moderate Buy”
Rough breakdown:
- 3 analysts: Strong Buy
- 15: Buy
- 4: Hold
- 5: Sell
Consensus price target: about $232, implying roughly 15% upside from Tuesday’s ~$200.5 close
Target range:
- Low end: around $150 (e.g., BNP Paribas)
- High end: around $270 (e.g., Vertical Research)

That wide spread reflects how polarizing Boeing still is on the Street:

Bulls focus on:
- The rebound in travel
- Huge commercial backlog (over 6,000 jets)
- Expected positive free cash flow starting in 2026
- The Spirit acquisition as a long‑term supply‑chain fix ^[27]
Bears worry about:
- Persistent quality and regulatory issues
- The cost and complexity of integrating Spirit
- Continued delays and cost overruns on the 777X, which has already been pushed back to 2027 and generated large charges ^[28]
- A still‑negative EPS profile (Q3 2025 EPS was ‑$7.47 vs. a consensus loss of about ‑$0.51, even though revenue grew more than 30% year on year) ^[29]

MarketBeat also pegs Boeing’s market cap at about $152 billion, with a negative P/E (~‑14.7) and beta ~1.18, underscoring that BA tends to move more than the market on both good and bad days. ^[30]

Technical commentators have recently described Boeing’s chart as a “bull flag breakout” after the early‑December surge, seeing pullbacks toward the $195–205 zone as a potential retest area – but that bullish technical case only holds if the delivery ramp starts to match the cash‑flow story. ^[31]

What to Watch Before the Market Opens on December 10, 2025

With the closing bell behind us on December 9, here are the key things traders and longer‑term investors are likely to focus on heading into Wednesday’s U.S. session.

1. Fresh reactions to November deliveries

Look for:

Broker research notes recalibrating 2025–2026 delivery assumptions for the 737 MAX, 787 and 777X.
Any signs of price‑target changes tied specifically to the November numbers, rather than to broader macro factors.

If analysts frame the November dip as a one‑month wobble within a still‑intact ramp, the stock could stabilize. If they treat it as evidence that the ramp is meaningfully behind schedule, selling pressure could persist. ^[32]

2. Integration headlines around Spirit AeroSystems

Investors will be watching for:

Additional detail on timing and cost of integrating Spirit’s sites into Boeing Commercial Airplanes and Boeing Global Services. ^[33]
Updates on required divestitures to Airbus and Composites Technology Research Malaysia as part of the FTC’s conditions. ^[34]

Any negative surprises on integration costs, regulatory obligations or labor relations could weigh on the stock. Conversely, clear messaging that the integration is on track may help rebuild confidence.

3. Macro and Fed expectations

Boeing is a Dow component and a cyclical industrial, so it tends to respond to:

Moves in U.S. equity index futures overnight
Shifts in expectations for interest‑rate cuts and global growth

Markets are currently bracing for the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision, and Reuters has noted that investors widely expect a 25‑basis‑point cut with heavy attention on the Fed’s forward guidance for 2026. ^[35]

A risk‑off macro tone into Wednesday’s open could amplify Boeing’s recent volatility. A more benign backdrop could allow stock‑specific news – like deliveries, Ghost Bat or Spirit – to dominate.

4. Cross‑read from Airbus and airline stocks

Given that Airbus has cut its 2025 delivery target and faces its own industrial challenges, traders may also watch: ^[36]

How Airbus (AIR.PA) trades in European hours.
Whether airline stocks continue to rally on IATA’s record profit forecast, reinforcing the view that long‑term aircraft demand is secure. ^[37]

If investors start to see Airbus as the new bottleneck, relative sentiment could gradually tilt further back toward Boeing despite its current troubles.

5. Ongoing defense and Ghost Bat news flow

Any follow‑ups on:

Additional Ghost Bat export interest
Progress on the new Toowoomba production facility in Australia
Broader adoption of collaborative combat aircraft concepts

may not move the stock immediately but do feed into the long‑duration upside case for Boeing’s defense business. ^[38]

Bottom Line: Short‑Term Noise vs. Long‑Term Execution

After the bell on December 9, 2025, the Boeing story is a bundle of contradictions:

Negative near term:
- November deliveries slipped 17% from October and trailed Airbus.
- The stock gave back almost 3% in a single session. ^[39]
Positive structural moves:
- The Spirit AeroSystems acquisition finally closed, giving Boeing more direct control over critical aerostructures. ^[40]
- The Ghost Bat drone hit a major autonomous combat milestone and secured fresh Australian funding. ^[41]
- IATA’s top executive publicly said confidence in Boeing deliveries is improving, even as global airline profits are forecast to hit record levels. ^[42]
Valuation & sentiment:
- Analysts, on balance, still rate the stock a Moderate Buy, with an average target well above current prices but a wide range that reflects genuine disagreement. ^[43]

Heading into the December 10 open, Boeing remains a high‑beta, high‑headline‑risk stock where each monthly delivery report and quality update can swing sentiment sharply. For traders, the question is whether Tuesday’s drop was a healthy retracement after an over‑extended rally, or the start of a more sustained rethink of the near‑term ramp.

For longer‑term investors, the core debate is simpler:

Can Boeing execute on its backlog, integrate Spirit smoothly, and turn today’s regulatory and production headaches into tomorrow’s high‑margin, high‑volume business – before another major setback hits?

Whichever camp you fall into, the December 9 after‑hours setup makes it clear that tomorrow’s open and the next few delivery updates will be closely watched inflection points for Boeing’s stock trajectory.