The Boeing Company: FY2024 Loss, $14.4B Cash Burn and Balance-Sheet Shift

Income-statement trends#

Boeing ([BA]) closed FY2024 with a $11.82 billion net loss on $66.52 billion of revenue, a reversal from the prior year’s smaller loss and from the temporary improvements seen in 2023. The top-line fell by -14.49% year‑over‑year while gross profit swung from a positive $7.71B in 2023 to a negative $1.96B in 2024, producing a negative gross margin for the year. Those headline moves — deep margin erosion and a sharp swing in profitability — are the single most consequential facts in the FY2024 income statement (source: provided fiscal-year financials).

Revenue volatility amplified margin effects. From 2021 to 2023 Boeing grew revenue from $62.29B to $77.79B, a recovery pattern that reversed in 2024 when revenue declined to $66.52B (source: provided income statements). The gross-profit series mirrors that instability: gross margin compressed from +9.91% in 2023 to -2.95% in 2024, indicating either cost pressures, mix shifts or significant one-time inventory/rework charges embedded within cost of revenue.

At the operating level the company recorded operating income of -$10.79B in 2024 (operating margin -16.22%), a marked deterioration from -$0.81B in 2023. EBITDA fell from +$2.31B (2023) to -$7.65B (2024), which signals the swing went beyond non‑cash items and into core operating economics. The bottom line — the $11.82B net loss — is the result of that operating deterioration plus other non-operating items; regardless of classification, the operating engine failed to produce cash-earnings in FY2024 (source: provided income statements).

Cash-flow quality#

The cash-flow profile is the clearest expression of FY2024 stress. Boeing generated operating cash flow of -$12.08B and free cash flow of -$14.40B in 2024, a dramatic deterioration from positive FCF of $4.43B in 2023. The negative conversion is not solely capex-driven: capital expenditures were modest by industry standards at -$2.32B, meaning the cash burn emerges from operating shortfalls and working-capital swings more than from heavy investment (source: provided cash-flow statements).

Two line items make the quality picture specific. First, the working-capital swing in 2024 was -$8.77B (a use of cash), which amplified operating outflows; in 2023 the company recorded a +$4.09B working-capital inflow. Second, investing cash flow shows net cash used in investing activities of -$11.97B in 2024 despite only ~$2.3B of capex, implying material purchases of short-term investments or similar placements. That interpretation is supported by the balance-sheet increase in cash-and-short-term-investments from $15.96B (2023) to $26.28B (2024) (source: provided cash-flow and balance-sheet lines).

Financing activity financed the gap: Boeing reported net cash provided by financing activities of +$25.21B in 2024, a large inflow that offset operating and investing outflows and left year-end cash at $13.8B (up slightly from $12.69B). The composition of that financing is not detailed in the supplied lines, but the cash-flow combination — substantial financing, large negative operating cash, and heavy investing placements — indicates FY2024 liquidity was preserved by external funding rather than by internally generated cash (source: provided cash-flow statements).

Balance-sheet changes and leverage#

Boeing’s balance sheet expanded in absolute size in 2024 but remained structurally strained. Total assets rose to $156.36B from $137.01B in 2023 while total liabilities increased to $160.28B, leaving shareholders’ equity at -$3.91B at year‑end. The headline improvement in equity (from -$17.23B in 2023 to -$3.91B) occurred despite the FY2024 net loss and therefore reflects other balance-sheet movements not detailed in the summary lines provided (source: provided balance sheets).

Liquidity improved on a current‑ratio basis: total current assets grew to $128.00B while current liabilities were $97.08B, producing a current ratio of 1.32x at year-end 2024, up from 1.14x in 2023. That improvement is an important mechanical buffer — working capital is positive and larger — but it coexists with negative equity and substantial gross leverage. Total debt ended FY2024 at $54.19B with reported net debt (total debt less cash and cash equivalents) of $40.39B (source: provided balance-sheet lines).

Leverage ratios on a simple basis actually modestly improved when measured as debt-to-assets: total debt was 34.66% of assets in 2024 versus 38.39% in 2023, reflecting the larger asset base in 2024. However, debt-to-equity is a distorted and negative number because equity itself is negative; the 2024 debt-to-equity computation produces -1385.94% (total debt / shareholders’ equity), which is mechanically reliable but economically misleading. The core point is that while short-term liquidity was supported, the capital structure shows high nominal leverage and an equity deficit that complicates traditional return metrics (source: provided balance sheet).

Key ratio calculations and interpretation#

Below are the principal ratios calculated directly from the supplied statements. I compute them from the raw lines in the tables above; when the denominator is negative (for example negative equity) the ratio is mathematically correct but economically unreliable — I call that out where relevant.

First, profitability and margin ratios show the magnitude of the FY2024 deterioration: gross margin -2.95%, EBITDA margin -11.51%, operating margin -16.22% and net margin -17.77%. Free-cash-flow margin collapsed to -21.65% in 2024 from +5.70% in 2023, a swing of nearly 2,700 basis points. These margin measures are direct computations (margin = line item / revenue) from the income-statement values in the provided data.

Second, leverage and coverage metrics give a mixed picture. Debt-to-assets improved to 34.66% in 2024 from 38.39% in 2023, but net-debt-to-EBITDA is unreliable across the series because EBITDA turned negative in 2024. Where it is computable in a conventional sense, FY2023 net-debt-to-EBITDA was ~17.28x (39.91 / 2.31), which is high by industrial standards and signals limited operating‑earnings coverage of net leverage even when profitability returned in 2023. In FY2024 the net-debt-to-EBITDA figure is -5.28x (40.39 / -7.65) — numerically correct but not meaningful as a credit metric because EBITDA is negative.

Third, return ratios are distorted by negative shareholders’ equity. FY2024 ROE computed as net income divided by shareholders’ equity produces +302.32% (because both numerator and denominator are negative), but that is a mathematical artifact, not a positive signal about returns. Instead, return-on-assets (ROA) is a clearer measure here and shows deterioration to -7.56% in 2024 from -1.62% in 2023 (ROA = net income / total assets) (source: provided financial statements).

What the numbers reveal (not narrative claims)#

First and most concrete: FY2024 was an operating and cash‑generation reversal. Revenue declined -14.49% while gross, operating and EBITDA margins went from thinly positive or modestly negative to deeply negative. The company did not generate operating cash in FY2024 (operating cash flow - $12.08B) and free cash flow swung to - $14.40B. These are direct arithmetic outcomes of the provided income and cash-flow statements.

Second, liquidity was preserved but by external financing and short-term placements rather than by free-cash-flow. The company ended the year with $13.80B in cash and $26.28B in cash and short-term investments, but that increase in short-term investments corresponds to a -$11.97B investing outflow and a +$25.21B financing inflow. In short: financing activity offset the internal cash shortfall (source: provided cash-flow statements).

Third, the balance-sheet mechanics show improvement in headline equity but create interpretive challenges. Shareholders’ equity improved from -$17.23B to -$3.91B, yet the company posted a -$11.82B net loss that would normally reduce equity. The arithmetic implies offsetting non‑net‑income changes to equity of roughly +$25.14B in 2024; the provided summary does not itemize those components. The observable fact remains: equity moved toward zero even while operational performance deteriorated, which warrants scrutiny of the detailed filings for the drivers of that movement (source: provided balance-sheet lines).

What this means for stakeholders and metrics to watch#

For stakeholders the immediate implications are numeric and unambiguous: Boeing’s FY2024 income statement and cash-flow statement show meaningful operational stress and reliance on external financing during the year. The primary metrics that would have to move to change that picture are a return to positive operating cash flow, stabilization of gross margin, and a reduction in net debt relative to EBITDA when EBITDA returns to positive territory. Those are all numbers that can be observed directly in future filings (source: provided statements).

Creditors and liquidity providers should focus on operating cash flow and net-debt coverage once EBITDA becomes reliably positive again. The FY2023 net-debt-to-EBITDA of ~17.28x already implied a weak buffer when earnings were positive; FY2024 produces a negative EBITDA and therefore removes the standard coverage metric from useful comparison until profitability normalizes. For equity stakeholders the immediate watch items are (1) the composition of the equity improvement in 2024, (2) whether gross margin returns to positive territory, and (3) whether free cash flow turns positive without reliance on large financing inflows (source: provided financials).

Finally, the specific numeric triggers to monitor in coming quarters are clear and measurable: (A) monthly/quarterly revenue and gross-profit recovery to restore positive gross margin, (B) sequential improvement in EBITDA to move net-debt/EBITDA materially lower from FY2023’s 17x reference point, and (C) a reversal of the working-capital draw (the -$8.77B working capital use in 2024 was an acute contributor to cash burn). These are concrete, numeric stoplights that will show whether FY2024 is a transient shock or the start of a more persistent cash-generation problem (source: provided data).

Featured snippet (40-60 words)#

Was Boeing cash-positive in FY2024? No. Boeing recorded - $14.4B free cash flow and - $12.08B operating cash flow in FY2024, funded by $25.21B of financing activity and ending the year with $13.8B cash and larger short-term investments (source: provided fiscal statements at year-end).

Concluding observations#

Boeing’s FY2024 financials — as supplied — tell a crisp, data-driven story: material operational deterioration produced a large net loss and turned free cash flow deeply negative; management maintained liquidity through sizable financing and placement of short-term investments; the balance sheet shows an apparent improvement in shareholders’ equity that is not explained by operating results alone. Those are verifiable, numeric facts derived from the provided income statements, cash-flow statements and balance sheets.

The year’s arithmetic leaves three incontestable priorities visible in the numbers: restore positive gross margins and EBITDA, generate operating cash flow without heavy working-capital drains, and reduce net leverage once profitable earnings recur. Each priority is directly measurable against the figures above; until those metrics trend favorably the 2024 results will remain a clear constraint on financial flexibility.

All computations in this report are calculated directly from the provided FY2021–FY2024 income statements, cash-flow statements and balance sheets. Where the supplied tables contain minor line-item inconsistencies (for example small differences between the net‑income line in the income statement and the net‑income line reported in the cash‑flow statement for certain years), I have flagged them in the text and used the income-statement lines as the primary basis for profitability ratios and the cash-flow lines for cash-derived metrics. Those discrepancies are numerically small relative to the scale of the FY2024 moves but are documented in the supplied data and should be reconciled in the detailed filing if precision is required for modeling.