Tag: European Market

It benefits immensely from being in a duopoly with Boeing in the commercial aircraft manufacturing business for aircraft 130 seats and up; the pair of companies act as a funnel through which all commercial aircraft demand must flow. This allows both companies to actively manage their order backlogs to reduce cyclicality, despite the intense cyclicality of the customer base.

Airbus’ commercial aircraft segment can broadly be split into two parts: nimble narrow-bodied planes that are ideal for efficiently running high-frequency short-haul routes, and wide-bodied behemoths that are generally reserved for transcontinental flights. Recently, narrow-body volume has increased substantially due to the rise globally of low-cost carriers and improved technology that allows smaller airplanes to operate flight paths that were previously unprofitable. We think that Airbus’ A320 family has taken the advantage in the upper end of this market, with the introduction of the A321neo LR and the forthcoming A321neo XLR, which will have a capacity of 4,700 nautical miles and would enable single-aisle routes from India to Europe. We anticipate that further technology improvements will push low-cost carriers into routes that have been dominated by legacy carriers.

On the wide-body side of the market, we anticipate much slower growth, as we expect improving technology will allow airlines to substitute narrow bodies for wide bodies for an increasing number of routes. Airbus has a competitive wide-body offering, the A350, though backlogs suggest that Boeing’s comparable 777, 777X, and 787 offerings resonate more with customers. Airbus also has segments dedicated to the production of defense-specific products and helicopter manufacturing. These businesses are less material to Airbus as a whole, generating slightly over 10% of our midcycle EBIT. We anticipate modest growth from these segments, largely assuming that defense spending as a proportion of GDP remains constant in the European Union and that helicopter deliveries rebound over the medium term.

Bulls say

• Airbus’ A320 family continues to have a substantial lead in the valuable narrow-body market, and the A321neo XLR has the potential to open new long range routes to low-cost carriers.
• Airbus is well positioned to benefit from emerging market growth in revenue passenger kilometers and a robust developed-market replacement cycle.
• We expect that commercial airframe manufacturing for aircraft 130 seats and up will remain a duopoly over the foreseeable future. We think customers will not have many options other than continuing to rely on incumbents.

Bears Say

• Aerospace remains a highly regulated space, and regulatory burden could increase globally subsequent to the grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX.
• It could take years for airlines to recover from the economic carnage caused by COVID-19, and the virus could lead to changed consumer behavior that would be unfavorable for the industry (for example, video conferences replace business trips).
• Aircraft development is susceptible to development delays and cost overruns.

Profile

Airbus is a major aerospace and defense firm. The company designs, develops, and manufactures commercial and military aircraft, as well as space launch vehicles and satellites. The company operates its business through three divisions: commercial, defense and space, and helicopters. Commercial offers a full range of aircraft ranging from the narrow-body (130-200 seats) A320 series to the much larger A350-1000 wide body. The defense and space segment supplies governments with military hardware, including transport aircraft, aerial tankers, and fighter aircraft (Euro fighter). The helicopter division manufactures turbine helicopters for the civil and para public markets.

Source:Morningstar

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