On top of winning over a whole generation of young customers with its self-deprecatingly humorous social media strategy, Dublin-based budget airline Ryanair (RYAOF) is often the go-to choice for those looking for the lowest possible fare between nearby European cities.
Chief executive Michael O’Leary was once pied in the face by protesters arguing that €10 fares disincentivize people from taking more eco-friendly modes of transportation like the train and thereby is a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.
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But the low fares are precisely what helped Ryanair get out of the pandemic with both record traveler numbers and profits. On May 20, the airline posted an annual earnings report dating until March 2024 that shows €1.92 billion (roughly $2.1 billion USD) in post-tax profit — this is a 34% increase from a year ago while total revenue is also up 25% to €13.44 billion year-over-year.
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Record passenger numbers seep into Ryanair profits
A large part of Ryanair’s success comes down to the record numbers of travelers who have been turning to it post-pandemic. The 184 million passengers who flew with Ryanair between 2023 and 2024 is a 23% increase from its best year before the 2019 pandemic and a 9% jump from 2023.
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Amid a 24% increase in operating costs and 32% increase in jet fuel costs specifically, Ryanair also raised its ticket prices by an average of 21%. But as Ryanair ticket prices rarely rise above €40, this ended up averaging out to around €5 per ticket — a difference that customers are not likely to even notice or go with another airline over.
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The airline is expecting to have an even busier summer season as it launched over 200 new destination both for Ryanair itself and subsidiaries such as Buzz and Malta Air. Many are to cities that have been seeing a boost of traveler demand.
To make up for the losses sustained during the pandemic-related flying decline in 2020 and 2021, the airline also announced a 700-million-euro share buyback program for investors.
“Our priorities have been very much: restore the pay for our people after Covid, bring in pay increases, pay down the debt,” Ryanair Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan said during an interview with CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box Europe.’ “And we’ve been paying down bonds, we now have 1.4 billion in gross cash at the end of the last year, and that’s why the board now have the confidence on top of the ordinary dividend program, to actually return the 700 million to shareholders.”
Despite the high profits, Ryanair stock has not risen on the news as softer pricing that chief executive Michael O’Leary says has a “recessionary feel” is expected for the summer.
“While the buyback is good news and shows confidence, and while [full year] '24 is broadly in-line with most parts of '25 guide as expected, we fear the further softening of the pricing commentary for peak summer may win the day," Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a note to investors.
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