Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Joby Aviation (NYSE:JOBY)

Joby Aviation, Inc. (NYSE:JOBY) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 40,845 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 20% compared to the typical daily volume of 34,088 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on JOBY. Oppenheimer set a $18.00 price objective on Joby Aviation in a research note on Thursday. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $15.50 target price on shares of Joby Aviation in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of Joby Aviation to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. HC Wainwright upgraded shares of Joby Aviation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Joby Aviation from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $13.81.

Joby Aviation News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Joby Aviation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat: Joby reported ($0.14) EPS vs. consensus ($0.20) and revenue of $30.84M (well above estimates), showing sharply reduced losses and accelerating top‑line traction — a key near‑term catalyst for bullish positioning. Earnings Release
• Positive Sentiment: Certification/commercial timing: Joby reiterated progress toward FAA certification and is targeting first passenger flights in 2026 — news that supports the revenue pathway investors are valuing. Joby targets first passenger flights in 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Commercial traction: Joby launched Uber air‑taxi bookings, boosting the commercialization narrative and investor interest in near‑term demand for its service. Uber booking launch
• Positive Sentiment: Funding/liquidity: Coverage notes Joby strengthened its balance sheet (including recent fundraising activity reported alongside results), easing short‑term cash‑runway concerns that had been a major downside risk. Earnings highlights & funding
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional/insider flows: Reports show notable investor interest (including a reported position by Dmitry Balyasny), which can support rallies when operational news is positive. Legendary investor Dmitry Balyasny loads up
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity: Unusual volume in call options (≈40,845 calls) shows short‑term speculative or hedged bullish interest but is ambiguous for direction. (No article link provided)
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade/price‑target cut: JPMorgan lowered its price target to $7 and assigned an “underweight” rating, adding fresh downside pressure and giving traders a reason to sell into rallies. JPMorgan underweight note
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Recent small but repeated insider sales by an executive may weigh on sentiment despite being modest in size. SEC Form 4 — Gregory Bowles
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation/technical risk: Multiple analysts highlight rich valuation versus execution risk; JOBY sits below its 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages, increasing downside vulnerability if the company fails to deliver clear certification/production milestones. Analyst/sector coverage

Insider Activity at Joby Aviation

In other news, insider Eric Allison sold 32,448 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.25, for a total value of $429,936.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 659,980 shares in the company, valued at $8,744,735. This trade represents a 4.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Joeben Bevirt sold 507,182 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.62, for a total value of $5,386,272.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 31,997,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,816,657.24. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 1,470,074 shares of company stock valued at $16,083,913 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 28.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Joby Aviation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JOBY. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Joby Aviation during the 3rd quarter worth $663,000. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Joby Aviation during the third quarter worth about $635,000. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its position in Joby Aviation by 20.0% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,150,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,562,000 after acquiring an additional 192,064 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Joby Aviation in the second quarter valued at about $461,000. Finally, Udine Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Joby Aviation in the third quarter valued at about $1,414,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.85% of the company’s stock.

Joby Aviation Trading Up 4.2%

NYSE JOBY opened at $10.23 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.97 and a beta of 2.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $14.40. Joby Aviation has a 12 month low of $4.96 and a 12 month high of $20.95.

Joby Aviation (NYSE:JOBY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.20) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $30.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.34) earnings per share. Joby Aviation’s revenue was up 5506.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Joby Aviation will post -0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Joby Aviation

Joby Aviation Inc is an aerospace company focused on developing electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for urban air mobility. The company’s core mission is to provide zero-emission aerial ridesharing services, combining the speed of helicopters with the cost efficiency and environmental benefits of electric propulsion. Joby’s eVTOL design emphasizes low noise profiles and high reliability, positioning the company to address congestion challenges in major metropolitan areas.

The company’s flagship aircraft is designed to carry a pilot and up to four passengers, offering point-to-point travel at speeds competitive with ground transportation.