Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Reduces Holdings in Ryanair Holdings PLC $RYAAY

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. sold 157,561 shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC, reducing its stake by 73.5%, leaving it with 56,759 shares valued at $2.4 million.
• Ryanair's stock has shown strong performance, with recent earnings surpassing estimates; the company reported $1.74 EPS on revenues of $5.07 billion.
• The company also announced an increase in its dividend, now at $0.534 per share, reflecting a significant boost from the previous $0.47, and a notable yield of 120.0%.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. cut its stake in Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Free Report) by 73.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,759 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 157,561 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Ryanair were worth $2,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Ryanair by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 38,800,258 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,691,536,000 after buying an additional 2,231,153 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 4.4% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 29,324,514 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,242,480,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233,059 shares during the period. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 5,604,258 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $244,290,000 after purchasing an additional 500,239 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair during the 4th quarter worth approximately $18,445,000. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ryanair by 63.7% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 762,556 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $33,240,000 after acquiring an additional 296,778 shares in the last quarter. 43.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on RYAAY shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $76.00 target price (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ryanair from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Oddo Bhf raised shares of Ryanair from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Two 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 company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $111.50.

Ryanair Stock Performance

Shares of RYAAY stock traded up $0.5190 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $66.1990. 459,889 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,551,608. The company has a market capitalization of $35.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.54, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm's 50-day moving average is $59.81 and its 200 day moving average is $52.04. Ryanair Holdings PLC has a 1 year low of $38.52 and a 1 year high of $67.18.

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

Ryanair Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.534 dividend. This is a boost from Ryanair's previous -- dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a yield of 120.0%. Ryanair's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.47%.

About Ryanair

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.