Ireland’s Ryanair Holdings, Europe’s largest low-cost airline, posted a profit after tax of €360 million in the first quarter of its financial year. That’s a 46 percent year-on-year drop and a significantly worse result than expected. Revenue from ticket sales per customer fell 15 percent to 41.93 euros, the company said in an earnings report today.
Weaker Ticket Revenue for the Key Summer Season
Management also warned that revenue from ticket sales in the key summer season would be significantly weaker than expected. Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan attributed this to consumer behaviour, which he said is now more frugal. Economists had expected after-tax profits to fall to just €538 million. The first quarter of fiscal 2025 ended in June.
CEO Michael O’Leary said the business had to boost ticket sales more than originally thought. This is the main reason why Ryanair collected less money from ticket sales in the result than a year ago.
“Although demand in the second quarter is strong, prices remain weaker than we thought. We now expect second-quarter prices to be significantly lower than last summer,” O’Leary pointed out, referring to the July to September period when Ryanair typically makes most of its profits. Initially, the company expected prices to stay about the same or increase slightly.
Uncertainty Over Full-Year Profit and Reduced Aircraft Deliveries
Forecasting a full-year profit is premature, according to the company’s boss. The company closes its financial year on 31 March.
“I think we have had two years of double-digit growth, both in terms of ticket sales and in terms of traffic. Well now there is a bit of a downturn,” Chief Financial Officer Sorahan said in an interview, according to Reuters. Asked when the downturn might end, he replied, “Who knows?”
Ryanair Stock Drop
Ryanair shares hit a record high of more than 21.70 euros in April this year, but have since written down nearly a quarter of their value. At the end of last week it closed on the Dublin stock exchange at €16.44 apiece, according to analysts, precisely because of weaker ticket sales.
Ryanair said it would receive 20 fewer Boeing 737 MAX aircraft than it had planned for the summer season. That’s down from the 23 planes the company announced in May. But management noted that deliveries from Boeing have been improving recently. Sorahan hopes that Boeing will deliver the last 50 aircraft ordered on time by next summer and that deliveries of the larger MAX 10s will begin on schedule in 2027.
Source: čtk
