March1,2021 BARRON’S 11
PREVIEW
A SPAC FUNDS ELECTRIC AIR TAXIS
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Monday 3/
Dentsply Sirona,NRG Energy, and
Zoom Video Communicationsre-
port quarterly results.
Eatonhosts its annual investor
conference.
The Institute for SupplyManage-
ment releases its Manufacturing Pur-
chasing Managers’ Index for February.
Consensus estimate is for a 58.6 read-
ing, about even with January’s figure.
The Manufacturing PMI has been
above the expansionary level of 50
since May of last year.
The Census Bureaureports con-
struction spending data for January.
Economists forecast a 0.6% month-
over-month gain to a seasonally ad-
justed annual rate of $1.5 trillion.
Construction spending has fully re-
covered from the pandemic-induced
shutdowns and now stands at an all-
time high.
Tuesday 3/
AutoZone,Hewlett Packard Enter-
prise,Ross Stores,Target, and
Veeva Systemsreport earnings.
Wednesday 3/
Brown-Forman,Dollar Tree,Mar-
vell Technology Group,Okta, and
Snowflakeannounce quarterly
results.
AnthemandExxon Mobilhold their
2021 investor days virtually.
ISM reportsits Services Purchasing
Managers’ Index for February. Expec-
tations are for a 58.8 reading, roughly
even with the January data. The Janu-
ary reading was the highest for the
index in nearly two years.
The Federal Reservereleases the
beige book, which gathers anecdotal
data of current economic conditions
in each of the 12 Federal Reserve
districts.
The Bureau of EconomicAnalysis
reports light-vehicle sales for February.
Consensus estimate is a seasonally
adjusted annual rate of 15.5 million,
down from 16.6 million in January.
Thursday 3/
Broadcom,Burlington Stores,Coo-
per Cos.,Costco Wholesale,Gap,
andKrogerreport earnings.
Friday 3/
The Bureau of LaborStatistics re-
leases the jobs report for February.
Economists forecast an increase of
200,000 in nonfarm payrolls, after
49,000 jobs were added in January.
The unemployment rate is expected
to edge up to 6.4% from 6.3%. In Janu-
ary, the average workweek was 35
hours, and average hourly earnings
were $29.96. This compares with 34.
hours and $28.43, respectively, a year
earlier.
The BEAand Census Bureau report
the international trade balance in
goods and services for January. Expec-
tations are for a $67 billion shortfall,
roughly even with December. In 2020,
the trade deficit totaled $678.7 billion,
the largest since 2008.
Coming Earnings
Consensus Estimate Year agoMLemonade (Q4) $-0. ...Tegna (Q4) 1.13 0.Zoom Video (Q4) 0. ...More Earnings on Page M32.Consensus Estimate
Day Consensus EstLast PeriodM January Construction Spending 0.70% 1.0%February ISM Manufacturing 58.6 58.TH Q4 Productivity -4.7% -4.8%January Durable Orders 1.0% 3.4%January Factory Orders 0.8% 1.1%F February Nonfarm Payrolls 200,000 49,February Unemployment Rate 6.4% 6.3%January Trade Balance -$67.4 bil -$66.6 bilJanuary Consumer Credit $16.8 bil $9.7 bilUnless otherwise indicated, times are Eastern. a-Advanced;f-Final; p-Preliminary; r-Revised Source: FactSetFor more information about coming economic reports—and
what they mean—go toBarron’sfree Economic Calendar
at http://www.barrons.com/market-dataADP releases its National Employment Report
for February. Consensus estimate is for a gain
of 230,000 private-sector jobs, after a 174,000 rise in January.
Wednesday
Flying Cars
Take Off
“We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters.”
Tech guru Peter Thiel’s 2011 shot at Twitter was really a
lament about a future that hadn’t turned out as the futur-
ists predicted. Now, however, investors might just get both.
Air-taxi start-up Joby Aviation is becoming a public
company by merging with a special purpose acquisition
company, or SPAC, backed byLinkedInco-founder-
turned-venture-capitalist Reid Hoffman andZynga
founder Mark Pincus. If approved by its shareholders, the
SPAC,Reinvent Technology Partners, will combine
with Joby by the end of the second quarter.
Air taxi doesn’t do Joby’s business model justice: It wants
to design and manufacture its own fleet of six-rotor, four-
passenger electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL,
aircraft, plus operate air-taxi services around the world. “We
are kind of likeTesla, meetsUber, meets the air,” says Joby
Executive Chairman Paul Sciarra, who is also aPinterest
co-founder. Joby wants to get people places faster and safer,
for the same cost as driving—better views, no gridlock.
Joby is targeting a 2024 commercial launch in a U.S. city,
when it will first see revenues. Between now and then, it
must secure certification from the Federal Aviation Admin-
istration, scale manufacturing, and select flight routes.
Success isn’t assured; air taxis have been tried before.
Helicopters have also been around for a while. The SPAC
merger will provide $1.5 billion in funding, and values Joby
at $8.5 billion based on where the SPAC shares are trading.
Like recent SPAC mergers, such asVirgin Galacticand
QuantumScape, Joby is a venture-capital-like bet in the
form of a public stock.—Nicholas Jasinski and Al Root
High Flying
The Estimated per-passenger cost of
a Joby air-taxi service from lower
Manhattan to JFK Airport.
Source: Joby Aviation
Vertical Liftoff
Joby Aviation projects ambitious
revenue targets once it gets off
the ground in 2024.
Joby Aviation Air-Taxi
PassengerCostEstimate
Joby Aviation Revenue
Projections,2024to
ertical Liftoff
assengerCostEstimate
$
2024 ’25 ’
0
1000
$2000 Million
Illustration by Elias Steinw011_p2bw060000_0_w01100_1____xa2021_01.pdf 1
27-Feb-21 04:35: