By Gianluca Lo Nostro
April 28 Reuters) - Europe's Airbus posted a sharp drop in first-quarter core profit on Tuesday, falling well below market expectations as the world's largest planemaker delivered fewer aircraft and was hurt by a weaker U.S. dollar.
Adjusted operating profit fell 52% to 300 million euros ($351 million), while revenue declined 7% to 12.65 billion euros in the three months to March 31.
Analysts had on average forecast adjusted operating profit of 348 million euros on revenue of 12.39
billion euros, according to company-compiled consensus data.
The European planemaker is racing against time to deliver the 870 aircraft it has targeted for 2026 after handing over 114 commercial aircraft in the quarter, down 16% from 136 a year earlier and below the 143 aircraft delivered by U.S. rival Boeing in the same period.
The group left its full-year guidance unchanged, reaffirming a target production rate of between 70 and 75 A320-family aircraft per month by the end of 2027 - a goal it trimmed in February from an earlier ambition of hitting 75 per month by the start of that year.
Even as orders remain strong, the France-based company is contending with late engine shipments from U.S.-based supplier Pratt & Whitney which are falling short of its needs. In an escalating dispute over late engine shipments that is threatening its efforts to lift aircraft production, Airbus is now pursuing potential damages, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters in March.
A rare bright spot in the quarter came from Airbus's defence and space business, which posted adjusted core profit of 130 million euros, well ahead of the average estimate of 111 million.
($1 = 0.8542 euros)
(Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Matt Scuffham)
