Boeing (BA) slides on lost Air Force contract

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) stock is falling this morning after the company lost a $35 billion contract which was awarded by the U.S. Air Force to two of its rivals. Under the contract, European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. and Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC) will build as many as 179 KC-45A refueling tankers for the Air Force. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on BA.

BA hit its 52 week high of 107.83 in July and set its 52 week low of 74.12 in January. This morning, BA opened at $79.32. So far today the stock has hit a low of $79.25 and a high of $80.89. As of 12:35, BA is trading at $80.34, down $2.45 (-3.0%). The chart for BA looks neutral and improving while S&P gives BA a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy rating.

For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider an April bear-call credit spread above the $90 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. This particular trade will make a 7.5% return in one and a half months as long as BA is below $90 at April expiration. Boeing would have to rise by more than 12% before we would start to lose money.

BA hasn't been above $90 since December and has shown resistance around $85 recently. This trade could be risky if the economy bounces back strongly, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by the resistance BA should find around $85.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in BA.