Ryanair Q1 profit falls, misses expectations

(Sharecast News) - Ryanair posted a 34% drop in first-quarter profit after tax on Monday, missing analysts' expectations, as fuel prices jumped and fares fell due to the conflict in the Middle East and the timing of Easter. Profit after tax declined to €538m from €820m in the same period a year earlier, as revenue nudged up 1% to €4.38bn. Analysts were expecting PAT of €579m.

Fares fell 6% during the quarter. Ryanair said that fares - which benefitted from a full Easter in April 2025 - "required stimulation as the Middle East conflict led to consumer hesitancy, concerns about EU jet-fuel shortages, economic uncertainty and later bookings".

Meanwhile, operating costs rose 11% to €3.81bn as the price of the company's 20% unhedged jet-fuel more than doubled.

Passenger numbers increased 6% to 61.3 million and the load factor, which gauges how full the planes are, was steady at 94%.

The airline said it has zero second-half visibility so it remains "far too early" to provide any meaningful guidance on FY27 profit after tax.

Chief executive Michael O'Leary said: "The final FY27 PAT remains highly sensitive to adverse external developments, incl. conflict escalation in the Middle East and Ukraine, the price of unhedged jet-fuel, macro-economic shocks and continuing European ATC strikes & mismanagement."

See latest RNS on Investegate