Boeing stockholders received two recent pieces of good news: A feared employee strike would not materialize, and the 787 Dreamliners cleared an important regulatory hurdle for sales to take off.

Employees at three different facilities in St. Louis had rejected Boeing’s most recent offer on July 24 and threatened to strike over retirement benefits. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace workers said Boeing then sweetened the pot after “membership stood strong” and demanded more.