AIA Group Ltd Buys 43,818 Shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC $RYAAY

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd increased its Ryanair stake by 50.6% in the first quarter, buying 43,818 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 130,402 shares worth about $7.54 million.
• Ryanair reported quarterly earnings of -$0.86 per share, beating analyst expectations, though revenue of $2.70 billion came in below estimates.
• Wall Street remains moderately bullish on the stock, with a consensus price target of $78.33; several firms reiterated buy ratings even as some insiders sold shares in recent months.

AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Free Report) by 50.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 130,402 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 43,818 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Ryanair were worth $7,537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of RYAAY. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 280.6% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 472 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Ryanair by 76.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its position in Ryanair by 2,929.4% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 515 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in Ryanair by 39.4% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 584 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Ryanair by 64.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 653 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. 43.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ryanair Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RYAAY opened at $62.57 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $60.84 and its 200 day moving average is $63.04. Ryanair Holdings PLC has a 12-month low of $53.14 and a 12-month high of $74.24. The stock has a market cap of $32.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 19th. The transportation company reported ($0.86) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.95) by $0.09. Ryanair had a return on equity of 25.58% and a net margin of 13.95%.The business had revenue of $2.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ryanair Holdings PLC will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on RYAAY shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Ryanair from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $79.00 price target on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ryanair has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.33.

Insider Transactions at Ryanair

In other Ryanair news, insider Darrell Thomas Hughes sold 8,197 shares of Ryanair stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.01, for a total transaction of $213,203.97. Following the transaction, the insider owned 37,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $971,785.62. This trade represents a 17.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Jason Paul Mcguinness sold 9,999 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.56, for a total value of $275,572.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 14,305 shares in the company, valued at $394,245.80. The trade was a 41.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 126,607 shares of company stock worth $3,386,997.

Ryanair 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding RYAAY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.