Ryanair Holdings RYAAY, a European carrier, reported solid traffic numbers for January 2025, driven by upbeat air-travel demand.

The number of passengers transported on Ryanair flights was 12.4 million in January 2025, reflecting a 2% year-over-year increase. The January load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) improved to 91% from 89% in the year-ago period.

As we know, production delays at Boeing BA have been hurting the fleet-related plans of most airline companies, and it is no different for RYAAY. Growth of RYAAY was hampered by 38 delayed Boeing deliveries.

We would like to remind investors that Ryanair recently reported encouraging third-quarter fiscal 2025 (ended Dec. 31, 2024) results wherein both earnings and revenues beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. 

Quarterly earnings per share of 29 cents beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 9 cents and improved year over year.Revenues of $3.15 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.94 billion. The top line improved year over year on the back of solid close-in Christmas/New Year bookings.

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Traffic (despite repeated Boeing delivery delays) grew 9% year over year, with marginally higher average fares (up 1% in the fiscal third quarter).

Ryanair expects its fiscal 2025 traffic to reach almost 200 million (+9%) passengers, subject to no further adverse news on Boeing delivery delays. This marks an improvement from the prior view of reaching 198-200 million passengers (+8%).

RYAAY’s Zacks Rank & Price Performance

RYAAY currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Shares of Ryanair have gained 16% over the past year compared with 26.7% growth of the Zacks Airline industry.

Six-Month Price Comparison

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Other Airline Picks

Investors interested in the Zacks Airline industry may also consider some other top-ranked stocks, such as United Airlines UAL and SkyWest SKYW. Each stock currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

United Airlines has an expected earnings growth rate of 21.11% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for UAL’s 2025 earnings per share has been revised 10.6% upward in the past 60 days.

The company has an encouraging track record with respect to the earnings surprise, having surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters. The average beat is 22.93%. Shares of UAL have surged 161.2% in the past year.

SkyWest, founded in 1972, is based in St. George and operates regional jets for major U.S. airlines. SKYW’S track record of successfully meeting the requirements of each of its airline heavyweight partners bodes well for the company. Revenues from flying agreements (which account for the bulk of the top line) are impressive owing to SKYW’s above ability. Owing to an uptick in air travel demand, passenger volumes have been upbeat and are likely to increase going forward as well. This is likely to keep SKYW's top line in good shape.

SKYW has an impressive earnings surprise history. The company's earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 16.71%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings per share has been revised 7.9% upward in the past 60 days.

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The Boeing Company (BA) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Ryanair Holdings PLC (RYAAY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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