Aer Lingus’s share price has closed 7 cent above Ryanair’s offer price of €1.30 for the airline after the stock attracted above-average levels of trading yesterday.
Aer Lingus shares traded as high as €1.41 during the session, before closing at €1.37. Some 1.4 million shares were traded, which is almost three times the recent typical volume for the stock.
When Ryanair made its third bid for its rival last June, the offer was at a 38 per cent premium to the Aer Lingus share price that prevailed at the time.
The Aer Lingus share price rose to €1.30 on Wednesday as the airline published full-year results that showed it had enjoyed strong revenues from both the short-haul and long-haul markets. The spike in the Aer Lingus share price yesterday suggests investors either favour the stock’s potential to deliver more earnings growth or they believe Ryanair will raise its offer price and make a successful bid for the company. Aer Lingus and Ryanair declined to comment.