Revolution.Aero Uplift: All is not loss

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How many losses does it take to make a win? Well fans of Manchester United Football Club will hope it is two. For eVTOL developers it is already a few more and the, probably optimistic, timeframe for certification and flight is still two years away at best.

The difficulties in bringing a clean sheet aircraft design into operational service are well known. Even established companies with deep pockets working within the framework of conventional fixed-wing design have struggled. Think Boeing 737 MAX. And thanks to that aircraft FAA certification processes have become much more rigorous as well.

Four of the six publicly-listed eVTOL developers – Vertical, Eve, Archer and Joby – have published their H1 2022 results. EHang will release later this week, Lilium in September.

All four have posted increased losses to varying degrees compared with Q1 2022.

Vertical reported a net operating loss of £39m for first half of 2022 compared to a net loss of £22m for the same period last year. At June’s end, the UK firm had cash and equivalents to the tune of £158m, enough, the firm says, to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements for at least the next year.

That said, this month Vertical set up an equity subscription line, which will allow it to issue up to $100m in new ordinary shares to help with capital expenditure.

At Archer, expenses and losses went up in Q2 compared to the first three months of 2022 and are expected to grow. The firm posted GAAP operating expenses of $80.2m, non-GAAP operating expenses of $50m and a net loss of $71.7m. This compared to $65.3m, $39.6m and $59.2m respectively. Archer is predicting total operating expenses for the third quarter to total between $95m and $103m.

Eve posted a net loss of $21.3m in H1 2022, $16.7m higher than the $4.6m net loss in first half of 2021. Looking at Q2, the company reported a net loss of $11.8m compared to $2.4m in Q2 2021. Losses driven, in large part, by higher R&D expenses, said Eve.

Following the firm’s listing on the NYSE and merger with Zanite Acquisition net cash reserves totalled $329.1m. Eduardo Couto, chief financial officer, Eve said the firm feels “extremely comfortable” with its current cash, because it provides the resources to continue eVTOL development for years to come.

Talking cash, Joby, by Q2 2022’s end, had $1.2bn. This represents the biggest pool of cash held by any listed eVTOL developer. The firm has also reduced its net cash spending forecast by $20m following internal efforts to cut expenditure. Operations, property purchases and equipment costs amounted to $134m in H1 2022, with $61m spent in the second quarter.

Joby recorded a net loss of $49.6m which includes operating expenses of $99.4m and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $74.1m. But thanks to progress on certification — Joby said it became the first eVTOL company to apply for foreign validation of an FAA type certificate — the firm traded up following results’ publication.

Judging by investor’s reactions, the Q2 results appear to have been received positively. All four companies are trading up at least 10% on a month ago. But only Vertical remains up on its share price year-to-date (YTD). It is currently trading at $7.65 compared to $6.88 on January 3, 2022; Joby is trading at $6.39 down from $7.48 YTD; Archer is currently $4.64 down from $6.17; and Eve is trading at $7.37 down from $10.18.

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