Welch & Forbes LLC Grows Stock Position in The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA)

Welch & Forbes LLC raised its position in The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,866 shares of the aircraft producer’s stock after buying an additional 200 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Boeing were worth $330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Boeing in the fourth quarter worth $230,944,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Boeing by 1,296.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,136,895 shares of the aircraft producer’s stock valued at $169,386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,055,472 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Boeing by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,178,444 shares of the aircraft producer’s stock worth $739,585,000 after purchasing an additional 981,796 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Boeing by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,778,195 shares of the aircraft producer’s stock worth $4,223,397,000 after purchasing an additional 636,594 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Boeing by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,700,706 shares of the aircraft producer’s stock valued at $1,018,775,000 after buying an additional 602,143 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.82% of the company’s stock.

Boeing Stock Performance

BA stock opened at $154.20 on Friday. The Boeing Company has a one year low of $137.03 and a one year high of $203.80. The company has a market capitalization of $115.66 billion, a PE ratio of -8.42 and a beta of 1.53. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $175.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.22.

Boeing (NYSE:BA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aircraft producer reported ($5.90) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.60) by ($4.30). During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.47) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that The Boeing Company will post -2.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Boeing

In related news, EVP Uma M. Amuluru sold 3,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.69, for a total transaction of $570,799.71. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,213 shares in the company, valued at $3,471,596.97. This trade represents a 14.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Boeing from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Boeing from $184.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Barclays upgraded shares of Boeing from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $190.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Boeing from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Boeing from $208.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $195.16.

Boeing Company Profile

The Boeing Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, sells, services, and supports commercial jetliners, military aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight and launch systems, and services worldwide. The company operates through Commercial Airplanes; Defense, Space & Security; and Global Services segments.