EH Stock: Can eVTOL Early-Mover EHang Rule the Skies?

EHang Holdings [EH] is a Chinese leader in urban air mobility (UAM), developing pilotless electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and the infrastructure required to operate them. 

The company’s core business spans autonomous passenger transport, logistics drones, smart-city management solutions and aerial-media systems.

It has secured key regulatory milestones in China, including type and production certificates for its pilotless eVTOL, giving it an early advantage in a sector where certification remains a high barrier to entry.

The business is still loss-making, but it is scaling: EHang has strengthened its cash position, expanded production capabilities and extended its global footprint through pilot deployments in multiple regions.

With a market cap of just over $1bn at present, EHang remains a relatively small stock, but it has sky-high ambitions.

“It’s not called the ‘low-altitude industry’, it’s called an ‘economy’,” CFO Conor Yang said in an interview with the Financial Times in November. “So in that vision it’s definitely not just used for tour spots … it’s used for transportation and for public services.”

Ahead of its earnings on November 26, OPTO unpacks how the company is positioning itself to benefit from long-term adoption of autonomous, low-altitude air transportation.

Middle East Milestone

The big news in recent days was that EHang has completed a series of trial air taxi flights in Doha using its pilotless EH216-S, marking the first urban flights of a pilotless eVTOL in the Middle East. 

The point-to-point route linked the Port of Doha with Katara Cultural Village, cutting a typical 30-minute car trip down to an eight-minute flight. The trials, which included human-carrying demonstrations, were cleared by Qatar’s Civil Aviation Authority.

The project is set to progress in multiple phases, addressing technical, operational and regulatory needs. Future expansions could include airport–city shuttle routes, dedicated air-taxi corridors for tourism and integration with Qatar’s broader transport network.

China Milestone

This breakthrough caps a year in which the firm has taken several major steps. 

Earlier in 2025, it became the first company globally to gain regulatory approval to commercially operate pilotless eVTOLs. 

Its initial approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China allows flights that start and end at the same location, enabling sightseeing tours in cities such as Guangzhou and Hefei. Airport-transfer services, which are not constrained by scenic-site hours, are expected to be cheaper than tourist offerings.

EHang has secured a first-mover advantage in China’s emerging low-altitude air mobility sector, benefiting from strict regulatory requirements that limit new entrants. The company has also developed software designed to manage the simultaneous operation of large fleets of its EH216-S aircraft, its two-seat, egg-shaped eVTOL.

National and local authorities view the low-altitude economy as a growth engine, supporting it with billions in infrastructure investment and the creation of a dedicated government department for drones, indicative of long-term institutional backing for EHang’s business model.

Q2 Earnings Summary; Q3 Preview

In the last quarter, EHang delivered 68 units of its EH216 model, generating revenue of RMB147.2m. This represented a 44% year-over-year increase and nearly a sixfold sequential rise. The result fell slightly short of market expectations.

Gross profit reached RMB92.1m, resulting in a gross margin of 62.6% — a substantial figure for a company at this stage, though flat year-over-year. Operating expenses rose to RMB172.9m, up 20% from the prior year, driven by higher R&D investment and expansion of the commercial team. While increased R&D spending is a positive signal for a technology-driven company, further scaling may allow optimization of other costs. The higher operating expenses led to a net loss of RMB81m, up 13% year-over-year. 

Adjusted net income, excluding share-based compensation and a legal settlement provision, was RMB9.4m — a substantial turnaround from a RMB31m loss in Q1, marking a turn to operational profitability.

New orders in Q2 also increased significantly, exceeding 150 EH216 units. 

Heading into EHang’s Q3 earnings, investors will be focused on several key metrics. Top of the list is unit deliveries and revenue, as the EH216 Series continues to expand across applications. Analysts will watch for sequential growth and whether the company can meet or exceed market expectations, following last quarter’s slight miss.

Margins are also under scrutiny. EHang reported a 62.6% gross margin in Q2, and investors will be keen to see if production scaling and operational efficiencies can maintain or improve profitability. Operating expenses, particularly R&D and commercial expansion, will be monitored to gauge whether the company can balance investment in innovation with disciplined cost management.

Finally, new order intake and forward-looking guidance will be closely analyzed, as these reflect demand momentum, market adoption of low-altitude air mobility and EHang’s competitive positioning in China’s rapidly growing eVTOL sector.

EHang’s NASDAQ-listed stock is down 8.77% in the year to November 19. 

Nonetheless, analysts are bullish on the stock. Of the 14 recommendations collated on Yahoo Finance, three are a ‘strong buy’ and 11 a ‘buy’. It will be interesting to see if that changes post-earnings.

Bird’s Eye View: EH vs JOBY vs ACHR

The ‘flying taxi’ sector is of course still very new. Nonetheless, there are a number of companies making major moves. Let’s compare EHang to two of them. 

Joby Aviation [JOBY] is a US-based developer of eVTOLs, focused on urban air mobility. Its flagship Joby S4 is a five-seat, piloted eVTOL designed for short urban and suburban routes. The company has secured FAA certification milestones and is pursuing commercial passenger operations in key US cities. With pre-orders from strategic partners, operations remain loss-making as it invests heavily in R&D, production scaling and infrastructure development. Joby aims to become a leading provider of sustainable, low-altitude transport, targeting both public transit integration and private mobility services.

Archer Aviation [ACHR] is another US-based eVTOL company. It is developing its four-seat Midnight aircraft for urban air taxi applications. Designed for 20–50-mile short hops, the Midnight is piloted (unlike some autonomous designs) and built to be integrated into city networks and airport-vertiport routes. Archer has made regulatory progress, securing FAA Part 135 (air carrier) and Part 141 (pilot training) certifications. It has strong financial backing, including an $850m raise in 2025 to boost liquidity. With strategic partners like United Airlines [UAL] and Stellantis [STLA], Archer is positioning itself to be among the first US companies to commercialize air mobility

Source: Stockanalysis.com

EHang, Joby, and Archer offer differentiated exposures in the eVTOL/urban air mobility space. EHang stands out for its early regulatory wins in China and real-world deployments of its autonomous EH216‑S. That means more immediate revenue visibility, helping reduce long-term execution risk, though it still isn’t profitable. Joby is making progress toward FAA certification and has a piloted 5-seat craft, aiming for large-scale service, but the monetization timeline is longer and relies on infrastructure build-out. Archer, meanwhile, combines strong financial backing — nearly $2bn cash after its latest raise — with strategic partnerships and active certification progress. 

For investors, EHang offers a more mature, revenue‑generating play in China’s market, while Joby and Archer are higher-risk, high-potential bets on future US scale, with Archer arguably better capitalized and further along the regulatory path.

EH stock trades at a lower P/S ratio than Joby, reflecting its early revenue generation and existing operational footprint. In contrast, Joby and Archer, still pre-profit, command higher forward-looking P/S and have no meaningful P/E ratios, emphasizing growth expectations over current earnings.

Conclusion: The Investment Case for EH Stock

The Bull Case for EHang

EHang is uniquely positioned, with regulatory approval and real-world deployments in China giving it a first-mover edge. Rapid order growth for its EH216‑S, combined with strong margins and software to scale its fleet, hints at a path to sustainable cash flow. With China pushing for low-altitude transport infrastructure and heavy government backing, EHang could dominate the domestic aerial mobility market.

The Bear Case for EHang

EHang remains unprofitable, heavily reliant on continued funding to scale manufacturing and commercial operations. Certification and regulatory risk still loom outside China, limiting its global reach. Demand could falter, especially if infrastructure or pilot projects don’t scale. High R&D and operating costs threaten profitability if unit sales or orders slow, and competition from better-capitalized Western eVTOL firms could undermine its long-term market share.