Zacks Research Downgrades Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) to Strong Sell

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

RYAAY has been the subject of several other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Ryanair in a report on Friday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $62.90 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ryanair from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ryanair has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.97.

Ryanair Stock Down 3.4%

Ryanair stock opened at $55.41 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $61.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.27. The stock has a market cap of $28.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.16. Ryanair has a twelve month low of $53.14 and a twelve month high of $74.24.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 17th. 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 return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 12.14%.The firm had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Ryanair will post 3.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John Jh Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.24, for a total transaction 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 represents a 16.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Paul Mcguinness sold 9,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.56, for a total transaction of $275,572.44. Following the sale, the insider owned 14,305 shares in the company, valued at $394,245.80. This represents a 41.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ryanair

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RYAAY. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Ryanair by 280.6% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 472 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ryanair by 76.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in shares of Ryanair by 2,929.4% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 515 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Ryanair by 39.4% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 584 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Ryanair by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 653 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 43.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ryanair

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.