Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) Stock Moved Down to Equal Weight by Barclays

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Barclays from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat reports.

RYAAY has been the topic of a number of other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Ryanair in a research report on Friday, August 14th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $62.90 target price on the stock. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ryanair in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Zacks Research downgraded Ryanair from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Ryanair in a report on Monday, August 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.97.

Ryanair Stock Performance

NASDAQ RYAAY opened at $54.04 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $55.91 and its 200 day moving average is $58.50. The company has a market capitalization of $28.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 1.19. Ryanair has a fifty-two week low of $51.68 and a fifty-two week high of $74.24.

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The transportation company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Ryanair had a return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 12.14%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ryanair will post 3.99 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ryanair

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Ryanair by 34.3% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,172,317 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $125,560,000 after purchasing an additional 555,029 shares during the period. Milford Funds Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ryanair in the fourth quarter valued at $39,379,000. Metropolis Capital Ltd increased its stake in Ryanair by 10.8% during the first quarter. Metropolis Capital Ltd now owns 3,949,246 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $228,266,000 after purchasing an additional 385,444 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Ryanair by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 5,752,264 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $332,480,000 after buying an additional 185,110 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Ryanair by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,052,677 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $118,645,000 after purchasing an additional 170,242 shares in the last quarter. 43.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ryanair Company Profile

Ryanair Holdings plc is an Ireland-based airline group that operates low-cost, scheduled passenger services primarily across Europe. Through its operating airlines, including Ryanair DAC, Malta Air, Buzz, Lauda and Ryanair UK, the group provides point-to-point air travel connecting cities and regional airports in Europe and selected destinations in North Africa.

The company’s core business is the sale of airline tickets, supported by ancillary services such as priority boarding, reserved seating, checked baggage, onboard food and beverages, travel insurance and car-hire or accommodation-related offerings.