Paris-traded Airbus reported results for fiscal year 2015 on Wednesday morning. Revenues for the group were up 6% to €64.45 billion (about $70.76 billion). In the commercial aircraft division, revenues rose 10% on 635 deliveries, including 27 A380s and 14 A350s. Earnings per share (EPS) rose from €2.99 in the 2014 to €3.43. For the quarter, EPS slipped from €1.21 in the same period a year ago to €1.02. Fourth-quarter revenue rose 6% to €21.49 billion
The company’s board recommended a payment of an annual dividend of €1.30 per share at its annual general meeting, up 8% compared with 2014’s dividend.
More important was the announcement that Airbus will increase its monthly production of its A330 from six per month to seven per month beginning in 2017. The company cut its production rate on the planes from 10 to nine to six as demand cooled for the current version of the A330. The re-engined A330neo is expected to go into production in the fourth quarter of 2017.
Airbus reported that the value of its order book reached €1 trillion ($1.1 trillion) based on list prices. Rival Boeing’s backlog value totals $489 billion, but it is based on actual selling prices (which Boeing does not reveal).
The company wrote 1,080 new commercial jet orders in 2015, down from 1456 in 2014. The value of the orders totaled $159 billion, down 4% from $166.3 billion in 2014. That’s not a surprise given the sharply higher orders posted by Airbus and Boeing in 2013 and 2014.
Airbus expects to deliver more than 650 new aircraft in 2016 (including helicopters and military planes) and it expects to add to its backlog of commercial jets. But the company is projecting flat unadjusted pretax earnings and earnings per share for the year, a forecast sure to dismay investors.
Airbus stock traded down about 2.3% in Paris Wednesday, at €54.15 in a 52-week range of €49.96 to €68.50.
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