Stock Market Reaction to the Recurring Incidents at Boeing: An Event Study Analysis

ABSTRACT This paper examines the short‐term market reaction of aircraft commercial manufacturers and airline industry for eight Boeing aircraft incidents occurred in the first semester of 2024. Using an event study, we observe a negative and statistically significant stock price reaction for Boeing around the dates of the aircraft incidents and positive statistically significant abnormal returns to its rivals Airbus and Embraer. The competitive effect explains this result. As for the airline industry, the results do not show the existence of statistically significant effects on share prices. The absence of fatalities associated with these events helps to explain the lack of statistical significance for airline industry. However, a more detailed analysis of the sample reveals different patterns of behaviour of airline share prices—a negative and statistically significant abnormal return for airline firms with a fleet with a high weight of Boeing aircraft, for low‐cost carriers and for airlines with a poor safety record. Since all of these airlines use Boeing aircrafts, it seems there is a ‘guilt by association’ effect. These reactions are also reinforced or mitigated by airline‐specific characteristics such as size, leverage, and firm age. Practical implications of our findings are provided.