Boeing beats 2Q profit forecasts

CHICAGO – Boeing reported higher-than-expected earnings for the second quarter despite lower revenue, and it raised its forecast for full-year profit on Wednesday, sending both the aircraft maker’s stock and the Dow higher.

The company is benefiting as profitable airlines continue to order new planes. With a backlog of orders approaching a half trillion dollars, Boeing said that it will buy back $10 billion of its own stock this year, making the remaining shares more valuable, and reduce its taxes by paying down its pension liability.

The shares jumped $20.99, or 9.9 percent, to close at $233.45. It was the stock’s biggest one-day gain in percentage terms since October 2008.

The Boeing bump added nearly 144 points to the Dow Jones industrial average, lifting it to 21,711.