Story ID: 
Embraer Maintains Outlook Despite Bizjet Sales Slide
By: Kerry Lynch
Caption: Company executives see challenging market, but maintaining activity.
Word Count: 267
Embraer Executive Jets sales plunged by about 44 percent in the first quarter as deliveries of its large jets fell by seven units and light jets by one, the company reported this morning. The Executive Jets division brought in $226 million in the first quarter, compared with $401.8 million in the same period last year. Embraer earlier had reported that first-quarter business jet deliveries had fallen from 23 in 2016 to 15 in the most recent quarter.

Despite the light quarter, Embraer reaffirmed its guidance for the year for deliveries of 70 to 80 Phenom light jets and 35 to 45 of its Legacy and Lineage jets. This would keep the company close to, if not a little below, the 117 business jets delivered last year.

Company executives noted that the business unit maintained its activity in the first quarter, but the market “has not shown great growth.” The executives continue to see challenges, but not enough to revise its planned outlook for the year.

They also reiterated that the first quarter tends to be among the weakest for the company and noted that several aircraft deliveries, including one for a Legacy, pushed into April, slipping out of first-quarter reporting.

The performance of the Executive Jets unit contributed to the company’s overall decline in revenues from $1.3 billion in first quarter a year ago to $1.026 billion in the most recent quarter. Also company-wide, earnings before income and taxes fell markedly from $85.7 million in the first three months of 2016 to $23.4 million this year. This year’s total reflects a $7.6 million reduction related to the company’s voluntary dismissal program.