What Year Did the Boeing Company Go Public?
Boeing has been publicly traded since 1978. As of 2015, Boeing is in a financial upswing and currently enjoys a spot among the top 30 biggest U.S. companies, in terms of revenue.
Boeing was founded in 1916, but it did not become a publicly traded company until 1978. This change from private to public was initiated by Boeing diversifying its operations throughout the 1970s. Boeing has had close connections to the U.S. military since the company’s inception, but during the 70s they courted more civilian markets. This was due, in part, to the slowed pace of the Apollo program in which they were heavily involved. During this period, Boeing branched out beyond their aeronautical roots and became a major presence in the civilian market for computers.
Although Boeing struggled in the early 1970s, it is currently considered the second biggest defense contractor and the biggest jet plane manufacturer in all of North America.