Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Ryanair has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from 11 analysts, with six buys, one strong buy, three holds and one sell. The average 12-month price target is $73.98, above the reported share price of $56.69.
• The airline reported quarterly EPS of $1.19, missing the $1.37 consensus estimate, while revenue of $5.0 billion also fell short of the $5.06 billion forecast. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $3.98.
• Ryanair announced a special dividend of $0.4434 per share, representing a current payout ratio of 24.52%; institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.66% of the company.

Shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $73.9750.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on RYAAY shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Ryanair in a report on Friday, August 14th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $62.90 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ryanair from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Monday.

Ryanair Stock Performance

NASDAQ:RYAAY opened at $56.69 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $60.90 and a 200-day moving average of $60.66. The company has a market capitalization of $29.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.63, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.16. Ryanair has a 52 week low of $53.14 and a 52 week high of $74.24.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The transportation company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Ryanair had a return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 12.14%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ryanair will post 3.98 EPS for the current year.

Ryanair Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $0.4434 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Ryanair's payout ratio is presently 24.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John Jh Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.24, for a total transaction of $468,600.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 76,025 shares in the company, valued at $2,375,021. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ryanair

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 24.8% during the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 21,289 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,378,000 after purchasing an additional 4,234 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair in the second quarter valued at $208,000. Plan A Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Ryanair in the second quarter valued at about $290,000. NS Partners Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 11.1% in the second quarter. NS Partners Ltd now owns 19,081 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,235,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 48.7% in the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 38,649 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,503,000 after buying an additional 12,652 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.66% of the company's stock.

Ryanair Company Profile

Ryanair Holdings plc is an Irish low-cost airline group headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. Founded in 1984, the company grew into one of Europe's largest budget carriers by offering point-to-point scheduled passenger services with an emphasis on low fares, high aircraft utilization and rapid turnaround times. Ryanair serves a broad network across Europe and nearby regions, focusing on both intra-European leisure travel and short-haul business routes.

The group primarily operates a single-type fleet based on the Boeing 737 family, supplemented by a mix of in-house and subsidiary airlines that help serve different markets and regulatory environments.

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