Al Root
Vertical Aerospace's stock fell -- a lot -- after the company recently reported fourth-quarter numbers. Investors appeared a little concerned about the startup's capital.
The maker of electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL, aircraft moved to address those concerns on Monday, announcing hundreds of millions in new and potential funding, including $50 million in common stock, with another $30 million expected in the coming weeks.
Along with new equity, the company will raise up to $50 million in new convertible secured debt. Mudrick Capital, Vertical's largest shareholder, agreed to restructure some existing debt and participate in the offering.
Yorkville Advisors Global has also agreed to purchase up to $250 million convertible preferred shares and provide a $500 million equity line of credit. That gives Vertical Aerospace the ability to raise money at higher equity prices.
"Today marks a new dawn for Vertical Aerospace," said CEO Stuart Simpson in a news release. "We have assembled a comprehensive, flexible financing package designed to execute our strategic plan, and materially strengthened our ability to build and certify Valo."
Certification of the company's eVTOL is slated for 2028.
eVTOLs are quiet, low-cost, easy-to-operate aircraft that can open new urban air taxi markets, which is why the technology is referred to as flying cars. Vertical's larger peers are Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, and Beta Technologies. Those firms are valued in the billions. Vertical has a market value of closer to $200 million.
Vertical stock was down 5.3% in midday trading at $1.95. The S&P 500 was down 0.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3%.
Stocks sometimes trade down on equity issuance. It makes some sense. There are more shares for essentially the same business. Still, adding capital is good news for Vertical Aerospace.
Coming into Monday trading, shares were down more than 40% since the company reported results on Mar. 24. (Including Monday, shares have dropped for seven consecutive days.) The company reported a smaller-than-expected loss, but management said they expected to spend about $195 million over the coming 12 months.
The company ended 2025 with about $93 million in cash, sparking concern about what came next. Now, investors know where the company's capital will come from and how much it can raise to support its development program.
Through midday trading, Vertical stock was down about 43% over the past 12 months. Essentially all of that decline has come in the past week.
Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 30, 2026 14:12 ET (18:12 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments