Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Stock Price Down 5.6% Following Weak Earnings

Key Points

• Ryanair shares fell 5.6% after the airline reported weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as low as $59.13 after closing at $62.57 the prior day.
• The company posted EPS of $1.19, missing Wall Street’s estimate of $1.37 by $0.18. Despite the miss, Ryanair reported a net margin of 13.95% and return on equity of 25.58%.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $78.33. Several firms recently reiterated buy or overweight ratings, though a few downgrades were also noted.

Shares of Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) traded down 5.6% on Monday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $59.13 and last traded at $59.05. Approximately 315,398 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 1,487,734 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.57.

The transportation company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.18). Ryanair had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 25.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RYAAY has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Ryanair from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Ryanair in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ryanair from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Juliusz Grzegorz Komorek sold 14,053 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.01, for a total value of $365,518.53. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,264 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,203,326.64. This trade represents a 23.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider John Jh Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.24, for a total value of $468,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 76,025 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,375,021. This trade represents a 16.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 126,607 shares of company stock worth $3,386,997 in the last three months.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ryanair

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Ryanair by 645,657.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,789,672 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $201,386,000 after acquiring an additional 2,789,240 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Ryanair by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 39,929,929 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,884,834,000 after purchasing an additional 2,464,742 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Ryanair by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,895,021 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $281,182,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,666 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ryanair in the 4th quarter worth $91,970,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Ryanair by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,304,889 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $527,341,000 after purchasing an additional 985,939 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 43.66% of the company's stock.

Ryanair Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $60.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $30.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.15.

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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