Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Ryanair's stock rating has been downgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" to a "hold," indicating a shift in analyst sentiment.
• Despite the downgrade, Ryanair has received a re-affirmed "strong-buy" rating from Raymond James with a price target increase to $76.00.
• Ryanair's stock performance shows a 12-month high of $67.18 and a recent quarterly earnings report revealing $1.74 EPS, surpassing analyst expectations.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on RYAAY. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $76.00 price target (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Ryanair in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Ryanair from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Oddo Bhf raised Ryanair from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Ryanair from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Ryanair Stock Performance

Shares of Ryanair stock opened at $56.93 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a 50-day moving average of $61.92 and a 200 day moving average of $54.63. Ryanair has a 12 month low of $38.52 and a 12 month high of $67.18.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The transportation company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.16 billion. Ryanair had a return on equity of 27.91% and a net margin of 14.42%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ryanair will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ryanair

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RYAAY. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Ryanair by 250.9% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 593 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Ryanair by 100.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 962 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 481 shares during the period. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in Ryanair by 1,158.0% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 43.66% of the company's stock.

Ryanair Company 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.

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