Ryanair has reported a H1 2021 net loss of €48 million compared to a H1 2020 net loss of €411 million, as traffic rebounded at lower fares. The airline’s H1 revenue increased 83% year-over-year to €2.15 billion, and the company ended the period with €4.2 billion in cash.
On Monday (November 1, 2021), Ryanair reported their first half 2021 (H1) financial results for the six month period ending September 30, 2021. The carrier reported an H1 2021 net loss of €48 million on a rebound in traffic at lower fares, compared to a net loss of €411 million during the same period last year. During H1, Ryanair’s traffic increased year-over-year by 128 percent from 17.1 million to 39.1 million guests. The airline received their first fuel-efficient Boeing 737-8200 ‘Gamechanger’ in June, and will receive over 65 by the peak summer 2022 period. At September 30, 2021 Ryanair had €4.24 billion in cash, up from €3.15 billion at March 31st, and the company’s net debt fell from €2.28 billion to €1.50 billion.
In Monday’s announcement, Ryanair’s Chief Executive Officer, Michael O’Leary said, in part,
“Ryanair has shown we can grow traffic while reducing our impact on the environment. Every passenger that switches to Ryanair from legacy airlines reduces their CO₂ emissions by up to 50% per flight. Over the next 5-years our traffic will grow by 50% to 225m p.a. This will be achieved on a fleet of new B737 Gamechanger aircraft, which offer 4% more seats, but consume 16% less fuel and cuts noise emissions by 40%, which helps to lower each passenger’s CO₂ and noise footprint over the next decade…
“…Our growth plans over the next 5 years will create 5,000 new jobs for pilots, cabin crew and engineers. Ryanair recently invested €50m in an Aviation Skills Training Centre in Dublin and we plan to invest over €100m in 2 more, high skills, training centres in possibly Spain and Poland during this period…
“…Following a very badly disrupted Q1, which saw most Easter flights cancelled and a slower than expected easing of EU Govt. travel restrictions in May and June, traffic rebounded in Q2 with the successful rollout of the EU Digital Covid Certificates (“DCC”) in July. H1 bookings were mostly “close-in” and required price stimulation, particularly to/from the UK where consumer confidence was undermined (until early Oct.), by the UK Govt.’s confusing and inconsistent traffic light system. In recent weeks, we have seen a surge in bookings for the Oct. mid-term and Christmas breaks and we expect this peak buoyancy to continue into Easter and S.22. We will continue our load active/yield passive recovery strategy as we rebuild load factors (consistently above 80% in Q2) and, in time, yields over the second half of FY22…”
Ryanair maintains one of the industry’s strongest balance sheets with a BBB rating from S&P and Fitch. At September 30, 2021, the company had €4.24 billion in cash and a large fleet of Boeing 737s that are nearly 90 percent unencumbered. In May, the airline issued a €1.2 billion 5-year unsecured bond at a record low coupon of only 0.875%. Driven by strong cashflows and supplier reimbursements, offset by CAPEX, Ryanair reduced their debt over the last six months by €800 million to €1.5 billion. During the second quarter, the carrier also agreed to sell their ten oldest Boeing 737NGs, which will exit the Ryanair fleet by the end of the financial year.
Ryanair will introduce 560 new routes and 14 new bases from winter 2021/22 through summer 2022. The carrier has also accelerated their growth plans, increasing their projection of carrying 200 million passengers by FY2026 to 225 million.
Ryanair Holdings, plc is Europe’s largest airline conglomerate and the parent company of Buzz, Lauda, Malta Air, and Ryanair DAC. The airline usually carries over 154 million passengers annually with over 2,500 daily departures. Ryanair typically serves over 200 destinations in 40 countries with a fleet of over 400 Boeing 737 Family aircraft and 20 Airbus A320s. Currently, the low-cost carrier has an additional 210 Boeing 737-8200s on order. Ryanair has maintained a stellar safety record for over 35 years and prides itself on being “Europe’s greenest cleanest airline group,” promising customers a reduction in CO2 emissions of up to 50%, versus the “Big 4 EU major airlines.”
Source: Ryanair