By Al Root

Joby Aviation reported better-than-expected first-quarter sales. Investors are pleased, but recent trading shows that what investors really want to see is Joby's aircraft flying paying passengers.

Tuesday evening, the electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL, aircraft maker reported an operating loss of $234 million and sales of $24 million. Wall Street was looking for a $198 million loss and $20.4 million in sales.

eVTOLs are quieter and easier to operate than traditional helicopters, opening up new urban air taxi markets.

Joby is still, essentially, presales. ($24 million is fine, but Wall Street is targeting billions in annual sales by the end of the decade.) Its aircraft aren't certified for commercial service yet. It's a larger loss and more sales than expected, but things look just about as they should.

Joby stock was up 3.1% at $8.95 in after-hours trading shortly after results were reported.

The company ended the quarter with $2.5 billion in cash and investments. Joby used about $195 million in the quarter.

Guidance was maintained. Joby still expects 2026 sales of between $105 and $115 million.

Cash use in the first half of the year will still be $340 million to $370 million. That figure excludes the purchase of a facility in Ohio.

It's been a busy few months for Joby. The company completed demonstration flights in San Francisco and New York. The company was also selected for the U.S. government's eIPP program designed to accelerate the development of eVTOL technology. It also made progress toward aircraft certification.

Joby still expects to start commercial operations in 2026.

That will be a catalyst for the stock. Investors have been looking for a catalyst. Coming into earnings, shares were down 8% over the past three months and down 42% over the past six months.

Still, Joby's stock is up 34% over the past 12 months, showing investors remain interested in eVTOL technology despite the turbulence.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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May 05, 2026 17:08 ET (21:08 GMT)

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