Brazilian aerospace company Embraer (ERJ) Thursday reported a net loss for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to a profit in the prior year. The results also missed analysts’ estimates.
The company reported an adjusted net loss of $6.6 million or $0.04 per share for the December quarter, compared to net income of $76.5 million or $0.42 per share a year earlier. Reported loss attributable to shareholders was $0.10 per share, which marked a climbdown from the year-ago quarter when the company posted earnings of $0.22 per share.
The weaker bottom-line performance reflects a 3.5% decline in revenues to $1.67 billion. Adjusted EBITDA, excluding special items, was $ 108.1 million, down from $204.8 million recorded a year earlier. The results fell short of analysts’ expectations.
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The aircraft maker delivered 33 commercial jets and 36 executive jets during the quarter. It had an order backlog of $16.3 billion at the end of the quarter, up 20% from the levels seen at the end of the preceding quarter. Meanwhile, the management reaffirmed its guidance for fiscal 2019, which was announced at the beginning of the year.
Last year, Embraer agreed to sell 80% of its commercial division to Boeing (BA) for $4.2 billion. The transaction is expected to create synergies that could give the companies a competitive advantage over their European rival Airbus. In February, the deal got the approval of Embraer shareholders, a month after it was granted the green signal by the Brazilian government.
In January, Boeing reported an 8% growth in its fourth-quarter earnings to $5.48 per share, aided by a 14% jump in revenues to $28.3 billion.
Embraer shares slipped nearly 14% since the beginning of 2019 and 23% over the past twelve months. The stock closed the last trading session slightly lower.
