Bombardier Inc. (TSX: BBD.B) has had the type of year that many investors would like to forget. The company started out the year with over 240 orders for the delayed CSeries Jets, targeting 300 orders by launch. The CSeries is Bombardier’s first foray into the larger size jet market that Airbus Group SE and Boeing Co. largely dominate. The CSeries is intended to be a direct competitor to the A320Neo and 737Max.
Unfortunately, the CSeries has not launched yet and, as a result, the company has yet to procure any additional orders in 2015—not even at the Paris Air Show, where there was significant interest in the jet.
Delays cost money, and designing a jet the size of the CSeries takes a considerable amount of time. Earlier this year, the company issued new shares that brought in a much-needed injection of capital, but the project itself is over budget by approximately $2 billion.
Let’s look at some reasons why Bombardier is the bargain stock to buy at the current price.
CSeries orders will be delivered and more orders will be placed
There’s no arguing that the CSeries project had significant delays and cost overruns—in the past. Looking forward with an eye for opportunity, one can’t help but think of the immense revenue potential for these planes that could be priced at $70 million each. Suddenly, recouping those overrun costs seems a little less daunting.
The plane is currently in the final stages of testing and acquiring the necessary certifications, and there have been no subsequent delays announced.
The current target date for deliveries to begin is 2016. Once that date is met, additional orders may materialize for the company as many potential customers were taking a wait-and-see approach as recently as at the Paris Air Show. Customers were interested to learn more about the jet and its capabilities, but have not yet committed to firm orders until deliveries begin.
To put those fears to rest, the company announced that later this week the CSeries will be making its first-ever appearance in Toronto and will provide a program status update.
Recent performance test results are showing that not only did the CSeries meet the efficiency standards set for the project, but surpassed them.
Even if there are no additional orders for the CSeries, the approximate 240 orders will fetch nearly $17 billion in revenue.
The other side to Bombardier
Given the amount of coverage related to Bombardier’s tumbling stock price and the CSeries project, it is fairly easy to forget there is an entirely different segment of Bombardier that is very profitable. While the company is planning to spin off the transportation segment of the company and list it independently in Frankfurt, the IPO has not occurred yet.
When that sale does happen, Bombardier can expect a healthy infusion of capital from the transaction, which will shore up the balance sheet while still retaining over 50% ownership in the transportation unit.
While investing in Bombardier remains a risk, it is hard not to see the potential revenue the company could come into if the CSeries project takes off, as is expected within the next few months. Given the current price, a small investment could deliver huge returns. In my opinion, Bombardier is a great option for an investor comfortable with considerable risk and potential reward.
