Embraer reported a $-292 million net loss attributable to shareholders for the first three months of 2020. This compares to -42.5 million in the same period last year, the Brazilian OEM said on June 1. Adjusted net loss was $-104 million versus -61,8 million last year.
The operating loss was $-46.9 million versus -15.2 million last year. The Q1-result was negatively impacted by special items that have to be seen largely in relation to the Covid-19 crisis, such as a $22.2 million fair value change on Embraer’s share in Republic Airways as well as $33.4 million in bad debt provisions on accounts receivables with airline customers.
Adjusted EBIT improved to $8.7 million from $-15.2 million last year, with EBIT margin at 1.4 percent from -1.8 percent.
Total revenues dropped to $633.8 million from 823.3 million last year. Commercial Aviation saw revenues go down to $140.5 million from 281.1 million, Services and Support to 213.1 million from 244.2 million, and Defense and Security to 149,1 million from 179.4 million.
The only segment to produce higher revenues was Executive Jets from 117.3 million to 129.6 million, this despite fewer total deliveries but thanks to an extra-large jet compared to last year. Executive delivered nine jets in Q1, Commercial five airliners.
Commercial Aviation has a backlog of 318 aircraft, of which 59 E195-E2 have recently been deferred by Azul to later dates. There have been more deferrals but no cancelations following the Covid-crisis. It expects a stable production situation for the next two years.
Embraer’s CEO Francisco Gomes Neto had little to report on the arbitration case against Boeing, which follows the US-planemaker’s much-publicized decision on April 24 to terminate both the commercial aircraft joint-venture and the separate one on the C-390 military transporter. The Q1 results include another $21.8 million in separation costs. In preparation for the JV, Embraer placed most of its Brazilian Commercial Aviation-staff on paid leave in January as it executed the carving out of the segment from the parent company.
Staff was placed on paid leave again in March as the OEM closed operations due to the outbreak of Covid-19. With an uncertain outcome of this prolonged crisis, Embraer says it had $2.5 billion in net cash available by the end of Q1. Total loans stood at $3.8 billion or $1.3 billion in net debt position. During Q1, Embraer received $600 million in additional short-term liquidity. It is evaluating additional financing. Reuters reported on May 31 that this includes another $600 million in loans from Brazilian banks.
Embraer will evaluate how to re-integrate Commercial Aviation within the parent company again, but this will come at a price in the form of redundancies. Gomes Neto said the OEM is having a careful look at its short and medium-term future strategy, which could include partnerships with other OEMs from China or India. This could result in the development of a new regional turboprop aircraft to compete with ATR and De Havilland Canada.
