Ryanair is facing disappointment in its business results, which has led to investor dissatisfaction. The Irish budget airline’s shares have plummeted by 17% following the release of a disappointing quarterly earnings report. Ryanair reported revenues of €3.6 billion ($4 billion), roughly unchanged from the prior year, while profits fell sharply by nearly 50% to €336 million. CEO Michael O’Leary noted that while more passengers are flying with Ryanair, attracting them has become increasingly challenging.
Although passenger traffic grew by 10% to 55 million, O’Leary expressed concerns over the need to significantly lower prices and stimulate bookings. He indicated that last-minute ticket sales and overall performance have been weaker than anticipated, especially leading into the busy summer months of July, August, and September.
The airline is also facing headwinds from rising labor costs and ongoing issues with Boeing’s delivery delays, which have been a persistent concern for O’Leary. He acknowledged support for the company after a mid-flight incident with a 737 Max 9 but has long pressed Boeing to improve its performance.
Additionally, O’Leary observed that customers are feeling the pressure of prolonged inflation and sluggish economic growth in the European Union, potentially complicating the airline’s outlook. In light of this, he mentioned that Ryanair may indeed benefit from reducing its fleet capacity in the upcoming summers.
He stated, “We will have less capacity into summer 2025 than we are originally scheduled to have with our Boeing delivery, and then we’re into two years of essentially no capacity growth at all. If consumers are going to be under pressure for the next year or 18 months, that might not be the worst place to be.”