Boeing suppliers fall after 787 test flight delay

By Bhaswati Mukhopadhyay

BANGALORE (Reuters) - Shares of most U.S.-based parts suppliers to Boeing Co's 787 program fell on Tuesday, after the planemaker postponed the first test flight of its Dreamliner for a fifth time, citing a structural problem.

Boeing also said the first delivery would be rescheduled and it would be several weeks before a new schedule was available.

However, some parts suppliers said it was too early to gauge any impact from the change in schedule.

The 787 program change will likely have a negative impact on major suppliers, which include Spirit Aerosystems Holdings Inc, Goodrich Corp and Rockwell Collins, the extent of which will not be known until a new schedule has been formulated, analyst Paul Nisbet of JSA Research said.

Shares of Spirit Aerosystems, which provides the nose for the aircraft, fell more than 7 percent in afternoon trade.

"They (Boeing) said they will come up with the schedule at some point in the next few weeks but until we get more information from Boeing, there is no immediate impact on us," Spirit spokeswoman Debbie Gann said.

Everybody is looking forward to the first flight, but it is for Boeing to make sure that everything is working properly and in line before they conduct the first flight, Gann added.

Shares of Goodrich, which makes wheels, brakes and other parts for 787, fell 41 cents to $49.02 in afternoon trade, while those of Rockwell Collins, which makes cockpit electronics for Boeing, fell more than a percent.

Rockwell Collins said it could not gauge how it would be affected but expressed disappointment about the latest delay.

The widebody, fuel-efficient 787 aircraft, already two years behind its original schedule, has been plagued by repeated production delays and a two-month long machinists strike last year.

"The suppliers were a lot more circumspect about the possibility of this thing (the 787 program) going forward without any more problems than anybody else was," analyst John Simon of Zacks Investment Research said.

Hexcel Corp, which supplies composite materials for the aircraft, refused to comment on the impact from the delay. The company's shares fell as much as 9 percent to $9 in afternoon trade.

Shares of Triumph Group Inc, which supplies composite ducts and fittings to the Dreamliner, were also down more than 4 percent at $41.83.

Unless Boeing changes the production rate, there will be no real impact on Triumph Group, analyst J.B. Groh of D.A. Davidson & Co said, adding that it is a little too early to assess the impact.

"We are sort of in a limbo at the moment," Zacks' Simon said.