Boeing Stock (NYSE:BA) Slips in Polish Tire Kerfuffle

While last week was a winner for aerospace stock Boeing (BA), this week started off a little less than stellar as Boeing found itself on ground zero of a political border dispute between Russia and Poland. The Polish government seized a truckload of tires heading for Russia by way of Belarus, and for an unexpected reason. Investors, however, were mostly unfazed, and Boeing shares slipped fractionally in Monday afternoon’s trading.

The word from the Polish customs authority was that five metric tons of tires heading for Russia were actually tires for Boeing civil aircraft. The Polish customs authority was expecting a shipment of car and bus tires, and the discrepancy was sufficient for the Polish government to get involved. Reports noted that the original shipper was a Spanish company, with the recipient in Azerbaijan. But the difference was enough for the Polish government to launch “…criminal fiscal proceedings…in connection with customs fraud,” and the “…sanctioned goods were detained.”

Boeing has, reports noted, halted spare parts supplies to Russia, as well as various services, including maintenance support. Some of these have apparently been in place since the Russia-Ukraine war kicked off. Despite this, however, Russia has still managed to land a range of goods, including outright military supplies, the report noted.

Australian Upgrades

Meanwhile, Boeing managed to land a new agreement in Australia, specifically relating to the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. The Royal Australian Air Force has a range of these aircraft, and with the new agreement, Boeing will offer “…maintenance, sustainment and capability upgrades” for them. The agreement is valued at A$291 million, about $187.6 million U.S., and that may not be the end of it.

Australia is working on building a “…deep maintenance and modification facility…” for its P-8A fleet in South Australia, which represents a move to “…see them last longer and retain their lethality,” according to Richard Marles, deputy prime minister and defense minister. It is a safe bet that Boeing will have something to do with that when it is up and running fully.

Is Boeing a Good Stock to Buy Right Now?

Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on BA stock based on 15 Buys, four Holds and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 10.29% rally in its share price over the past year, the average BA price target of $207.78 per share implies 3.25% upside potential.

See more BA analyst ratings

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