DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ryanair reported annual profit up 34% to a record 1.92 billion euros on Monday and expressed “cautious optimism” over summer ticket prices which are expected be stable or slightly higher than last year.
Analysts surveyed by the airline had forecast an annual profit of 1.905 billion euros.
Ryanair, the leading airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried, has also stressed that it is still waiting for the 23 aircraft that Boeing must deliver to it by the end of July and that there is a risk – although “unlikely” – that deliveries are further delayed.
The Irish airline’s chief financial officer, Neil Sorahan, told Reuters that Boeing’s new production team in Seattle was delivering planes with “a little more regularity” and that if things went well the company could receive two or three additional planes by the end of July.
Chief executive Michael O’Leary warned two weeks ago that summer rates were likely to be lower than the 5% to 10% rise envisaged at the end of April. Ryanair said on Monday that its forecasts depended heavily on last-minute bookings for the summer.
The low-cost carrier carried a record 184 million passengers in the annual financial year ended March 31, and reaffirmed its goal of increasing its traffic from 198 million to 200 million passengers in the new financial year. Ryanair initially expected, in March, a figure of 205 million passengers before aircraft delivery delays.
The transport group also announced a share buyback worth 700 million euros, which will be officially launched later this week.
(Reporting Padraic Halpin; Nathan Vifflin, edited by Claude Chendjou)
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