Needham & Company LLC Has Lowered Expectations for Archer Aviation (NYSE:ACHR) Stock Price

Key Points

• Needham cut its Archer Aviation price target from $9 to $7 but maintained a Buy rating; the new target implies 44.78% upside from the stock’s current price. Analysts overall have a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of $11.
• Archer reported Q3 revenue of $5.1 million, ahead of the $3.57 million consensus, but its per-share loss of $0.35 was slightly worse than expected and wider than a year earlier.
• The company highlighted progress toward commercialization, including an FAA certificate it says enables Los Angeles operations, a Boeing transaction nearing completion, and a year-end target for a piloted transition flight.

Archer Aviation (NYSE:ACHR - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC from $9.00 to $7.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's price target suggests a potential upside of 44.78% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on ACHR. Barclays upgraded Archer Aviation from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $4.50 to $8.00 in a research note on Friday, October 9th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating on shares of Archer Aviation in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $18.00 price objective on Archer Aviation in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on Archer Aviation from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Archer Aviation in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Archer Aviation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $11.00.

Archer Aviation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACHR opened at $4.83 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a PE ratio of -4.48 and a beta of 3.59. Archer Aviation has a 1 year low of $3.62 and a 1 year high of $9.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $4.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 10.21 and a quick ratio of 10.21.

Archer Aviation (NYSE:ACHR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.34) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $5.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.20) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Archer Aviation will post -1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Priya Gupta sold 10,015 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.41, for a total value of $64,196.15. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 202,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,299,845.44. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Eric Lentell sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.31, for a total transaction of $631,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 85,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $536,419.41. This represents a 54.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 176,657 shares of company stock worth $1,122,371 over the last quarter. Insiders own 5.55% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Archer Aviation

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its stake in Archer Aviation by 22.9% in the second quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 13,126 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,447 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Archer Aviation by 20.1% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 15,688 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 2,629 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its position in shares of Archer Aviation by 20.0% during the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 16,890 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 2,820 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Archer Aviation by 59.4% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 8,786 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 3,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Archer Aviation by 8.2% during the third quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 43,357 shares of the company's stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 3,282 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.34% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Archer Aviation

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

• Positive Sentiment: Archer said it received an FAA Market Survey Certificate that it says unlocks Los Angeles operations. This is a regulatory and operational milestone as the company works toward commercial air-taxi service. Archer Q3 results and FAA certificate announcement
• Positive Sentiment: The company said its Boeing transaction is close to completion; Boeing is expected to become Archer’s largest shareholder following the close. CEO Adam Goldstein also set a year-end target for a piloted transition flight, providing near-term milestones investors can track. Boeing transaction Piloted transition flight target
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 revenue was $5.1 million, above the $3.6 million FactSet estimate, but the reported loss of $0.35 per share was slightly wider than the $0.34 consensus estimate. The revenue beat is encouraging, though it has not yet translated into profitability. Q3 revenue results Q3 per-share loss
• Negative Sentiment: The quarterly loss widened from the year-earlier period, and Archer continues to face substantial spending and commercialization challenges. Those costs and the time needed to bring air-taxi service to market remain risks despite recent milestones. Article on financial challenges

About Archer Aviation

Archer Aviation is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California, that develops electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and related services. Its aircraft are designed for short passenger trips, including potential air taxi routes between urban areas and nearby airports.

The company's primary aircraft is Midnight, a piloted eVTOL designed to carry four passengers and a pilot. Archer is working to bring the aircraft to commercial service, subject to regulatory approvals, and is pursuing operations in the United States and international markets.

Founded in 2018, Archer was co-founded by Adam Goldstein, who serves as its chief executive officer, and Brett Adcock.

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