Ryanair Q3 profit falls as costs rise despite strong demand

Ryanair reported a third-quarter profit after tax (PAT) of €115 million before exceptional items, down 22% from €149 million a year earlier, despite higher passenger volumes and rising fares.

The airline carried 47.5 million passengers during the quarter, a 6% increase year on year, while average fares rose 4% to €44. Revenue grew 9% to €3.21 billion, reflecting strong demand during the October school mid-term period and close-in bookings over Christmas and New Year.

Operating costs, excluding exceptional items, increased 6% to €3.11 billion, broadly flat on a per-passenger basis. Ryanair said cost discipline remained strong, though profit was impacted by the absence of delivery delay compensation received in the prior-year quarter.

Post-exceptional PAT fell sharply to €30 million after the company booked an €85 million charge relating to a provision for around one-third of a €256 million fine imposed by Italy’s competition authority (AGCM). Ryanair said the fine was “baseless” and confirmed it is appealing the decision, expressing confidence that it will be overturned.

Ancillary revenue rose 7% to €1.11 billion, while scheduled revenue increased 10% to €2.10 billion. Load factors remained stable at 92%.

At the end of December, Ryanair had a fleet of 643 aircraft, including 206 Boeing 737-8200 “Gamechanger” aircraft. The group expects to receive the final four aircraft of this order by the end of February, supporting 4% traffic growth to 216 million passengers in FY27.

The airline’s balance sheet remains strong, with gross cash of €2.4 billion at the end of December and net cash of €1 billion. Ryanair also highlighted its ongoing €750 million share buyback programme, under which it has repurchased and cancelled 13.1 million shares so far. An interim dividend of €0.193 per share is due to be paid in late February.

Looking ahead, Ryanair upgraded its FY26 traffic forecast to almost 208 million passengers, citing strong demand and earlier-than-expected Boeing deliveries. It now expects full-year fare growth to exceed previous guidance of 7% by up to two percentage points.

The group is guiding for FY26 PAT (pre-exceptional items) in the range of €2.13 billion to €2.23 billion, while cautioning that results remain vulnerable to external risks, including geopolitical instability, macroeconomic shocks, and ongoing air traffic control disruptions across Europe.