Editor's note: This article has been corrected. Archer's aircraft is called Midnight.
What happened
Archer Aviation (ACHR -0.81%) stock is making big gains in Monday's trading following recent insider buying. The company's share price was up 16.9% as of 2 p.m. ET, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Archer Aviation submitted filings to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday showing company executives had purchased stock the day prior. With a new week of trading now under way, investors are viewing recent stock purchases made by leadership as a positive sign and are pouring into the stock.
So what
Famous investor Peter Lynch once said, "Insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: They think the price will rise." With most of Archer Aviation's executive team recently ramping up its investment in the company, it seems clear that leadership is becoming increasingly bullish about the business's future.
Archer's recent filings show that Chief Operating Officer Tom Muniz, CFO Mark Mesler, Chief Legal Officer Andy Missan, and Chief People and Partnerships Officer Tosha Perkins purchased company shares last week. Across their combined purchases, the executives bought roughly $246,000 worth of stock on Aug. 17.
Now what
Excitement has been building about Archer Aviation and the rollout for its Midnight flying electric vehicle. The company's share price is now up more than 280% year to date.
While Archer has yet to record any revenue, the company recently received special airworthiness certification for its Midnight vehicle from the Federal Aviation Administration. With the regulatory approval, the vehicle has been given the green light to fly in U.S. airspace in select scenarios. Archer expects to deliver its first vehicle to the U.S. Department of Defense and move on to commercial operations in 2025.
The business's outlook remains highly speculative, but it looks like this nascent market could be ready to take off. Morgan Stanley estimates that the urban air-mobility market will generate $29 billion in annual sales in 2030 and grow to a market size of more than $1 trillion by 2040.
