Ryanair hinted that it could join other big names in leaving the Irish Stock Exchange after announcing plans to pay shareholders regular dividends.
Building materials giant CRH left the Dublin market for Wall Street in September while Paddy Power owner Flutter maintains that taking a secondary listing in New York could force it to do the same.
Ryanair chief financial officer Neil Sorahan said on Monday that it “remained to be seen” whether Europe’s biggest airline would stay with the Irish exchange.
He pointed out that the group’s shares were already listed on New York’s Nasdaq and that it needed to remain listed in Europe.
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“We would like to stay in Dublin,” said Mr Sorahan. “But we were very disappointed that the Government did not do anything on stamp duty in the last budget.”
He argued that the Irish market needed support to revive its fortunes in light of the big-name departures.
[ Ryanair profits hit €2.18bn as airline plans €400m payout to shareholdersOpens in new window ]
Ryanair’s shares soared in Dublin on Monday following news that it had earned €2.18 billion first-half profit and planned to return €400 million to investors in two ordinary dividend payments in February and September 2024.
Its stock was more than 5 per cent up at €15.995 in mid-afternoon, after trading above €16.46 shortly after 1pm on Monday.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary told analysts that the company was repaying shareholders “including, I might add, myself” who supported a €400 million rights issue at the height of the Covid crisis in September 2020.
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That allowed the airline to borrow €850 million through a low-interest bond, which helped it emerge from the pandemic “in a position of unrivalled strategic and financial strength”, said Mr O’Leary. With a 3.9 per cent shareholding, he will receive about €15.6 million from the dividends.
Under a new policy, Ryanair will return 25 per cent of the previous year’s profit after tax to shareholders in ordinary dividends, beginning from its next financial year, which starts in April.
It will also consider returning surplus cash through special dividends or share buybacks, debt and capital spending requirements allowing, its chief executive added.
He noted that Ryanair had returned €6.74 billion to shareholders between 2008 and 2020 through special dividends and share buybacks.
Ryanair repaid more than €1 billion in debt, including a €750 million bond, in August. Mr Sorahan confirmed that it was on track to be debt free by 2026.
Net cash was €840 million at the end of September while there were no liabilities attached to any of its 534 Boeing aircraft.
Mr Sorahan said the group planned to fund debt repayment and spending on new aircraft from its own cash flows.
Mr O’Leary argued that this significantly widened its cost advantage over rivals “who are heavily exposed to rising interest rates and rising aircraft lease costs”.
