Baird Financial Group Inc. Acquires 232,197 Shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC $RYAAY

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Ryanair Holdings by 30.4%, acquiring an additional 232,197 shares, bringing its total ownership to 994,753 shares valued at approximately $42.15 million.
• Ryanair reported $1.74 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst estimates, with a total revenue of $5.07 billion, significantly higher than the forecasted $4.16 billion.
• The company announced a special dividend of $0.534 per share, an increase from the previous special dividend of $0.47, with a dividend payout ratio of only 14.55%.

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Free Report) by 30.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 994,753 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 232,197 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.19% of Ryanair worth $42,148,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 100.0% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 962 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 481 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 1,158.0% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair in the first quarter valued at $48,000. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 39.8% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in shares of Ryanair by 260.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,424 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.66% of the company's stock.

Ryanair Stock Up 1.8%

RYAAY stock traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $62.09. The stock had a trading volume of 728,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 910,572. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Ryanair Holdings PLC has a 1-year low of $38.52 and a 1-year high of $67.18. The company has a fifty day moving average of $61.79 and a 200 day moving average of $53.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.90, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.37.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The transportation company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.16 billion. Ryanair had a return on equity of 27.91% and a net margin of 14.42%. On average, equities analysts expect that Ryanair Holdings PLC will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ryanair Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.534 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 120.0%. This is a positive change from Ryanair's previous special dividend of $0.47. Ryanair's payout ratio is currently 14.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RYAAY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Oddo Bhf raised Ryanair from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Ryanair from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $76.00.

Ryanair Profile

Ryanair Holdings plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides scheduled-passenger airline services in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, and internationally. It is also involved in the provision of various ancillary services, such as non-flight scheduled and Internet-related services, as well as in-flight sale of beverages, food, duty-free, and merchandise; and markets car hire, travel insurance, and accommodation services through its website and mobile app.