The Crowd Is Dumping This Industrial Stock. Here's Why I'd Be Buying the Dip.

Picture the last time you were stuck in bad traffic. Awful traffic -- like in Atlanta, New York, or L.A. The kind that draws out the grumpiest side of us all, the bumper-to-bumper, stop-and-go traffic -- a long red line on the GPS -- with several chokepoints and squeezes, and no end in sight.

That kind of traffic is no laughing matter to drivers or city planners. But thanks to Joby Aviation (NYSE: JOBY), traffic like that could one day inspire you to take an alternative route in the sky.

Call them flying cars -- or taxis, or shuttles -- the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicles Joby is designing have immense potential to revolutionize the transportation industry. Despite the recent sell-off of Joby stock, that potential is looking less and less imaginary by the week. Here's why I'd be considering Joby if you're a growth stock investor.

The race to the skies is starting to narrow

Joby Aviation is widely recognized as the front-runner in the race to certify an eVTOL aircraft in the U.S.

Indeed, the aviation start-up has been working closely with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) since the late 2010s -- it was the first eVTOL company to sign a G-1 certification basis with the FAA -- and it's now working its way through Stage 4 of the FAA's five-stage type certification process.

Joby has already started testing FAA-conforming aircraft for Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) -- a major milestone in Joby's march toward FAA type certification.

At the end of April 2026, Joby demonstrated a piloted eVTOL aircraft above New York City. In the city's first-ever point-to-point eVTOL flight, Joby's aircraft flew between JFK Airport and various points in Manhattan. Not only did this showcase Joby's technology working successfully, but it also bolstered the company's chances of opening commercial operations in the city.

Image source: Joby Aviation.

Through the White House's eVTOL Integration Pilot Program, Joby expects to demonstrate similar flights in cities across the U.S., including those in Arizona, Florida, Idaho, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, and Utah.

Success for Joby could unlock trillions

Joby has matured into a special kind of speculative growth stock, one whose future is opening up even as Wall Street continues to price it through the lenses of its risks rather than progress.

All things considered, the company still carries a pretty hefty market valuation, with a roughly $10 billion market cap on trailing-12-month revenue of about $77 million. The company doesn't have the FAA certification to operate commercially, nor has it proven its business model -- air taxi services -- will attract enough travelers to generate meaningful revenue.

That said, many, including analysts at Morgan Stanley, believe the long-term market opportunity for eVTOLs and urban mobility could eventually reach $1 trillion or more in the coming decades. The opportunity extends well beyond chauffeuring passengers to and from airports. eVTOLs could also transport medical supplies between hospitals and assist the military in defense and emergency-response missions.

True, Joby's success isn't guaranteed, and investors should weigh the company's FAA progress (or lack thereof) wisely. For those who want to play the future of transportation, however, the stock's current dip might represent an attractive entry point.

Steven Porrello has positions in Joby Aviation. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.