GE Aerospace announced United Airlines has selected 300 GEnx to grow their new Boeing 787 fleet - United is now the largest GEnx operator in the world.
GE Aerospace released its first quarter financial results today. We encourage you to read the full materials and listen to our earnings call at 7:30 AM EDT.
Key highlights of GE Aerospace's performance for the first quarter:
- Total orders of $23.0B, +87%
- Total revenue (GAAP) of $12.4B, +25%; adjusted revenue* $11.6B, +29%
- Profit (GAAP) of $2.2B, (2)%; operating profit* $2.5B, +18%
- Profit margin (GAAP) of 17.7%, (490) bps; operating profit margin* 21.8%, (200) bps
- Continuing EPS (GAAP) of $1.83, flat; adjusted EPS* $1.86, +25%
- Cash from Operating Activities (GAAP) of $1.9B, +21%; free cash flow* $1.7B, +14%
GE Aerospace Chairman and CEO H. Lawrence Culp, Jr., said, "GE Aerospace had a strong first quarter with orders growing 87% and revenue up 29% supporting double-digit growth in earnings and free cash flow. FLIGHT DECK keeps us focused on what our customers value: driving improvements in output and durability, while reducing cost of ownership and applying today's learnings to next-generation technologies."
Culp continued, "Our young and diverse fleet coupled with a $170 billion commercial services backlog positions us well to navigate the current operating environment. With the dynamic geopolitical landscape, we're holding our full-year guidance across the board and are trending toward the high-end of the range given our strong start to the year."
GE Aerospace is off to a strong start to 2026. In the first quarter, orders were up87%, reflecting continued demand for services and equipment with our backlog now totaling over $210 billion. Adjusted revenue* increased 29%, primarily driven by CES services up 39% and double-digit growth in DPT. Operating profit* was up 18% with both segments up double-digits. Services volume and price were partially offset by install engine growth (including 9X), investments, and inflation. Operating profit margins*, as expected, were down (200) bps to 21.8%. Adjusted EPS* grew 25% to $1.86 and free cash flow* was $1.7 billion, up 14%, largely driven by higher earnings.
Our customer-driven approach is translating into backlog growth as we announced commercial wins for more than 650 engines including agreements with American Airlines for more than 300 LEAP-1A engines, United Airlines for 300 GEnx engines, and Delta Airlines for 60 GEnx engines. Additionally signed a long-term materials agreement with Ryanair to cover their entire fleet of ~2,000 CFM56 and LEAP engines.
In light of today’s operating environment, we’re reducing our full year departures-b) outlook from mid-single digit growth to flat to low-single digit growth. This includes a low double-digit decline in the Middle East for the year, which represents roughly 5% of our departures-b).
We are well positioned to navigate cycles with our young and diverse fleet, coupled with a backlog providing resilience through changes in air traffic. Our commercial services business is supported by a robust backlog of more than $170 billion, up nearly $30 billion since year‑end 2024. Within services, demand continues to exceed supply. Spare parts delinquency is up roughly 70% since year‑end 2024, even after more than 25% revenue growth over the past five quarters.
Looking ahead, GE Aerospace is maintaining our full-year 2026 guidance given the dynamic macro environment. Given the strong first quarter, we are trending toward the higher-end of the range of:
2026 Guidance Assumptions: GE Aerospace's full-year 2026 guidance now assumes several macro factors including the price of brent crude oil remaining elevated through 3Q and decreasing by year-end, a near-term impact from fuel availability, a reduction in global GDP estimates, and flat to low-single-digit departures-b) growth in 2026. Guidance does not assume a global economic recession.
While the external environment remains dynamic, we are confident in our ability to deliver toward the higher-end of our full-year guide and are poised for another year of substantial growth.
Thank you for your continued interest in GE Aerospace,
GE Aerospace Investor Relations team
*Non-GAAP Financial Measure; For important information about forward-looking statements, please see here.
(a –FCF* conversion: FCF*/adjusted net income
(b – GE Aerospace/CFM departures