Here's what the latest pickup in Boeing deliveries means for investors

Boeing picked up the pace of plane deliveries last month, an encouraging signal for the metric that investors care most about in its turnaround. The planemaker announced Tuesday that 47 jets were delivered in April, one more than in March. This number would be even higher if not for customer requirements that shifted some deliveries to May, the company said. "Another month of solid jet deliveries show Boeing's turnaround is progressing," said Jeff Marks, the Investing Club's director of portfolio analysis. The numbers show Boeing is headed in the right direction for improving free cash flow (FCF) – the best way to grade the company's financial health at this stage of CEO Kelly Ortberg's rehabilitation efforts. That's because deliveries are when customers actually hand over most of the cash for aircraft. Boeing expects to generate between $1 billion to $3 billion of free cash flow in 2026, following back-to-back years of burning cash. The company still used up more cash than it brought in during the first quarter. However, CFO Jay Malave said last month that FCF should improve in the April-to-June period before turning positive in the second half of the year. As Boeing's cash generation improves and becomes more positive consistently, earnings should follow suit. Increasing its rate of production puts Boeing in a position to deliver more planes. …