Ryanair Holdings plc (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Ryanair Holdings plc (NASDAQ:RYAAY) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $151.00.

Several brokerages have weighed in on RYAAY. Barclays upgraded shares of Ryanair from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Ryanair from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised Ryanair from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th.

Ryanair Stock Down 3.5 %

Ryanair stock opened at $42.96 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $44.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.51. Ryanair has a 1-year low of $36.96 and a 1-year high of $60.29. The company has a market cap of $23.29 billion, a PE ratio of 14.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The transportation company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.91 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.59 billion. Ryanair had a return on equity of 19.92% and a net margin of 11.38%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.88 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ryanair will post 2.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ryanair Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.4677 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Ryanair’s payout ratio is currently 33.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RYAAY. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ryanair by 125.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,013 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 1,120 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Ryanair by 145.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,779,187 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $170,744,000 after acquiring an additional 2,240,230 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ryanair by 142.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,839,384 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $81,282,000 after purchasing an additional 1,079,920 shares during the period. Centerstone Investors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 54.7% during the third quarter. Centerstone Investors LLC now owns 319,517 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $14,436,000 after purchasing an additional 112,999 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Ryanair in the third quarter valued at $141,000. 43.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.