With shares up 25 per cent in the space of a month and 36 per cent since the beginning of the year, Ryanair has been one of the market's star performers this year. But with "sector rotation" - the market's jargon for the shift from growth stocks to cyclical industrial stocks - now might be the time for investors to take some profits.

Ryanair's own broker, Davy, doesn't quite say people should take profits, but the broker does suggest that with Ryanair shares trading on a hefty premium to both their European and US peer groups, the share price may at best mark time at its current range between €8.80 and €9.00.

At the middle of that trading range, Ryanair is on a prospective p/e of 22.4, way ahead of virtually every European airline, including British Airways, and one p/e point ahead of the main US no-frills airline, Southwest.

Davy believes Ryanair's premium to the sector is justified based on expected annual earnings growth of 16 per cent over the next couple of years. But the size of the ratings premium and the shift into lower-rated industrial stocks puts a question mark over the share's short-term future. Ryanair is well worth holding based on its growth prospects, but small investors could be forgiven for selling part of their holding - at least up to their CGT thresholds.