Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ:RYAAY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,175,860 shares, a growth of 32.6% from the March 15th total of 1,640,387 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,692,672 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Ryanair Stock Performance

Ryanair stock traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $62.01. The stock had a trading volume of 1,010,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,481,771. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.37 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.26. Ryanair has a 12 month low of $44.51 and a 12 month high of $74.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $63.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.23.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The transportation company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. Ryanair had a net margin of 15.04% and a return on equity of 29.76%. As a group, research analysts predict that Ryanair will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ryanair from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 25th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ryanair from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Ryanair from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Evercore upgraded Ryanair from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Ryanair during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 280.6% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 472 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ryanair by 76.0% in the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in shares of Ryanair by 2,929.4% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 515 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Ryanair by 1,057.4% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 544 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 497 shares during the period. 43.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.