The Boeing Company (BA), AT&T Inc. (T): Three Important Stories You May Have Missed on Friday

Not a trading day passes when some stocks experience some kind of significant event. These events can have a massive impact on the stocks you own and the health of your portfolio. It can be hard to keep up with it all, and my fellow Fools and I are happy to bring you the latest news. Today, I’ll review three events you might have missed on Friday.

Let’s first start with The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) and the fire at London’s Heathrow Airport. Around mid-afternoon, a The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) 787 Dreamliner parked in a service area of the airport caught fire. Preliminary reports didn’t indicate whether the fire had started in the battery compartment or if it was related to the electrical system at all, but we do know that it wasn’t a result of the plane’s engines, as General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) quickly released a statement indicating that it hadn’t been caused by the key components General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) supplies to The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA).

You may recall that Dreamliners had been grounded for a number of months following a number of battery-related issues. But did you know that the plane that caught fire on Friday at Heathrow was owned by Ethiopian Airlines? And that the Dreamliners owned by that airline had been the first to be retrofitted by The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) with equipment to help protect the plane from any further issues with the battery system? These fixes had been approved by the FAA and other regulators around the world before the 787s were permitted to fly.

When the Heathrow news hit the markets, the stock initially fell by more than 7%. The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA)’s weight within the Dow Jones Industrial Average 2 Minute (INDEXDJX:.DJI) pulled the index to its lowest point of the day, down 50 points. But as The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) slowly recovered during the latter part of the day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 2 Minute (INDEXDJX:.DJI) managed to close higher by just 3 points.

One story that surely slid under a number of investors’ radars was that AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) made an offer of $15 per share, or just under $1.2 billion, to buy Leap Wireless International, Inc. (NASDAQ:LEAP). The report wasn’t released until after the regular trading day ended on Friday. Shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) ended the after-hours session flat, at $35.81, but Leap Wireless International, Inc. (NASDAQ:LEAP)’s shares rose an incredible 116.92% to hit $17.31 per share, or a full $2.31 higher than AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)’s offer price.