Ryanair Holdings RYAAY, a European carrier, reported solid traffic numbers for December 2024, driven by upbeat air travel demand.

The number of passengers transported on Ryanair flights was 13.6 million in December 2024, reflecting an 8% year-over-year increase. RYAAY’s traffic in December was much more than the November reading of 13 million.

The December load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) improved to 92% from 91% in the year-ago period. This figure remained flat sequentially, reflecting consistent passenger demand for the airline's services. 

RYAAY operated more than 77,380 flights in December 2024. This marks an improvement from 73,750 flights operated in November 2024.

Passenger volume has been robust at Ryanair over the past few months owing to the rebound in air traffic from COVID-19 lows. Driven by the air travel demand strength, RYAAY's traffic grew 9% year over year during fiscal 2024. During the first half of fiscal 2025, traffic grew 9% year over year, despite multiple Boeing BA delivery delays.

To meet the upbeat demand, Ryanair expects its traffic view to grow 8% on a year-over-year basis for fiscal 2025, subject to no worsening of current Boeing delivery delays.

RYAAY’s Zacks Rank & Price Performance

RYAAY currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Shares of Ryanair have declined 12.5% over the past year compared with the 36.1% growth of the Zacks Airline industry.

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Other Airline Picks

Investors interested in the Zacks Airline industry may also consider Southwest Airlines LUV and SkyWest SKYW, each stock currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Southwest Airlines is based in Dallas, TX. Improvement in air-travel demand bodes well for Southwest Airlines' top line. LUV’s solid balance sheet allows the company to reward its shareholders through share buybacks and dividend payments.

LUV has an expected earnings growth rate of 105% for 2025. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings has been revised 5.3% upward in the past 60 days. 

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 79.1%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings per share has been revised 5.3% upward in the past 60 days.

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The Boeing Company (BA) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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