Labaton Keller Sucharow LLP (“Labaton”) announces that, on January 30, 2024, it filed a securities class action lawsuit (the “Complaint”) on behalf of its client the State of Rhode Island Office of the General Treasurer, on behalf of the Employees’ Retirement System of the State of Rhode Island (“Rhode Island”) against The Boeing Company (“Boeing” or the “Company) (NYSE: BA) and certain Boeing officers (collectively, “Defendants”). The action, which is captioned State of Rhode Island Office of the General Treasurer, on behalf of the Employees’ Retirement System of the State of Rhode Island v. The Boeing Company, No. 24-cv-00151 (E.D. Va.), asserts claims under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”), and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Boeing common stock between October 23, 2019 and January 24, 2024, inclusive (the “Class Period”).

Boeing, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, is one of the largest aerospace companies in the world. Its Commercial Airplanes Segment is a leading producer of commercial aircraft and offers a family of commercial jetliners including its 737 MAX. Approximately five years ago, two Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes were involved in fatal crashes caused by malfunctions due to design flaws in the 737 MAX’s flight control software. The first crash occurred in October 2018 and the second crash occurred in March 2019 killing a total of 346 people and leading to 737 MAX planes being grounded from March 2019 to December 2020.

The Class Period starts on October 23, 2019, when Defendants boasted that Boeing was making progress towards the safe return to service of the 737 MAX. Throughout the Class Period, Defendants continued to assure investors that Boeing was laser-focused on safety and quality. Defendants also claimed that Boeing did not make trade-offs between safety and profit, and that safety was Boeing’s priority.

Unbeknownst to investors, statements such as those above were false and misleading because Boeing failed to disclose that it had been prioritizing its profits over safety, which led to poor quality control standards in the production of its commercial aircrafts such as the 737 MAX, resulting in a heightened risk of manufacturing flaws which could render the Company’s new airplanes unsafe. This very risk had materialized during the Class Period. These false and misleading statements caused Boeing stock to trade at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period.

It took a near disaster to expose this heightened safety risk. The public first learned about it on January 5, 2024 when a panel called a “door plug” flew out of the side of a 737 MAX 9 (a variant of 737 MAX) during Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. This left a gaping hole in the plane’s main cabin, feet from where passengers were sitting. Over the next few weeks, investigations into the incident continued and problems with such door plugs on other 737 MAX planes were discovered including loose bolts holding the door plugs in place, further revealing the Company’s manufacturing and production missteps and leading to the grounding of many 737 MAX 9 planes. In reaction to these and other related disclosures, Boeing’s stock price plummeted from $249.00 on January 5, 2024 to $201.88 on January 25, 2024, a $47.12 per share or 18.9% decline.

If you purchased or acquired Boeing common stock during the Class Period and were damaged thereby, you are a member of the “Class” and may be able to seek appointment as Lead Plaintiff. Lead Plaintiff motion papers must be filed no later than April 1, 2024. The Lead Plaintiff is a court-appointed representative for absent members of the Class. You do not need to seek appointment as Lead Plaintiff to share in any Class recovery in this action. If you are a Class member and there is a recovery for the Class, you can share in that recovery as an absent Class member. You may retain counsel of your choice to represent you in this action.

If you would like to consider serving as Lead Plaintiff or have any questions about this lawsuit, you may contact Francis P. McConville, Esq. of Labaton, at (212) 907-0650, or via email at fmcconville@labaton.com. You can view a copy of the complaint online here.

Rhode Island is represented by Labaton Keller Sucharow, which represents many of the largest pension funds in the United States and internationally with combined assets under management of more than $3.5 trillion. Labaton Keller Sucharow’s litigation reputation is built on its half-century of securities litigation experience, more than seventy full-time attorneys, and in-house team of investigators, financial analysts, and forensic accountants. Labaton Keller Sucharow has been recognized for its excellence by the courts and peers, and it is consistently ranked in leading industry publications. Offices are located in New York, NY, Wilmington, DE, and Washington, D.C. More information about Labaton Keller Sucharow is available at www.labaton.com.

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