After Hours: Boeing's Possible Break, Autodesk's Q1 Whiff

Results, results, results. Since we're still inside earnings season, quarterly results are driving much of tonight's post-market trading. Autodesk (ADSK 2.79%) reported its Q1 figures following market close, around the same time as corporate cousins HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise unveiled their respective Q2s.

Outside of quarterly results, Boeing (BA -0.24%), it seems, was the focus of some good news from its most important regulator.

A Boeing 737 MAX 8 in use by Air China. Image source: Boeing.

Boeing's 737 MAX to be un-grounded?

Boeing's controversial plane might be flying again very soon. According to a report from Reuters released in the late afternoon, citing "three people with knowledge of the matter," Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) representatives said that the 737 MAX jets might be allowed to fly domestic routes as soon as late June.

The comments were apparently made in a briefing on the plane that took place in Montreal between the officials from the U.S. regulator and members of the governing council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The ICAO is the United Nations' aviation agency.

Reuters' sources added that there is not yet a precise timetable for the un-grounding to occur.

The 737 MAX was grounded worldwide in March, following two crashes that occurred in close succession with nearly new models of the aircraft. Although the FAA initially defended the plane, it soon followed by grounding it in the U.S.

The FAA, the ICAO, and Boeing have not yet commented officially on the Reuters report. 

The company's stock is up cautiously in post-market trading Thursday evening.

Autodesk's Q1 falls short

Autodesk, maker of popular design software, hasn't gotten off to a pretty start in its fiscal 2020. The company reported Q1 results that didn't meet expectations.

For the quarter, Autodesk's net revenue came in at $735.5 million, 31% higher year over year, on billings that increased 40% to $798 million. Adjusted net income rose considerably, landing at $99 million ($0.45 per share) against Q1 2019's $14.4 million ($0.06). 

Subscription revenue improved markedly. The company also attributed the overall growth to factors such as the strong performance of its solutions for the construction industry.

In spite of the big improvements, the headline figures were under analyst estimates. On average, prognosticators were modeling $740 million on the top line and a per-share adjusted net profit of $0.47.

Autodesk's Q2 and full-year guidance, however, broadly met expectations. The company predicts it will book $3.25 billion to $3.30 billion in revenue for the latter period, and earnings of $2.71 to $2.90 per share. Analysts have estimated $3.29 billion and $2.83, respectively.

Evening traders don't seem impressed by these numbers. Autodesk shares are down by nearly 9% in after-hours action.

HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise Q2s

Two peas once in the same corporate pod, HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise both reported their respective Q2 2019s late afternoon Thursday.

If we go by after-market trading, HP had the better quarter according to investors. Here's the side-by-side scorecard:

Data Sources: HP, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Barron's, HDNet. *Adjusted. YOY = year over year. 

For HP, no one product segment stood out as an over-performer, with some declining in revenue and some advancing. In the latter dynamic, commercial revenue increased an encouraging 7%.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise's segment performance was similarly mixed. One bright spot was the company's Aruba wireless networking unit. Its services revenue rose by 16%, although this was partially offset by an 8% decline in its product revenue.

HP is winning the post-market trading race just now. Its stock is up by nearly 3%, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise's is down marginally.