Ryanair up 5% on profit forecast, dividend announcement
A Ryanair Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft as seen flying, landing and taxiing at Eindhoven Airport EIN.
Nicolas Economou | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Dublin-listed shares of Ryanair rose 5.2% in early trade after the low-cost airline said it expected full-year profits of between 1.85 billion euros ($1.9 billion) and 2.05 billion euros, which would represent an all-time high.
The company also announced it would begin regular dividend payments for the first time as it moves past pandemic financial challenges, with 400 million euros to be distributed through 2024.
Ryanair said record summer passenger numbers and prices hikes had offset higher fuel costs in the first half, as it reported a rise in post-tax profit to 2.18 billion euros from 1.37 billion euros in the first half of the financial year.
It expects “modest losses” in the second-half winter period.
The business swung to a post-tax profit of 1.31 billion euros for the full-year ending March 31, after two years of hefty annual losses.
Ryanair share price.
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