Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY – Get Free Report) and Air France-KLM (OTC:AFLYY – Get Free Report) are both transportation companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.
Profitability
This table compares Ryanair and Air France-KLM’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Ryanair | 12.14% | 21.46% | 9.91% |
| Air France-KLM | 0.39% | 19.62% | 0.34% |
Institutional & Insider Ownership
43.7% of Ryanair shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.9% of Air France-KLM shares are owned by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Valuation and Earnings
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Ryanair | $13.82 billion | 1.92 | $2.07 billion | $3.26 | 15.30 |
| Air France-KLM | $32.49 billion | 0.07 | $1.01 billion | $0.11 | 8.02 |
Ryanair has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Air France-KLM. Air France-KLM is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ryanair, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings for Ryanair and Air France-KLM, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Ryanair | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3.13 |
| Air France-KLM | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
Ryanair currently has a consensus price target of $147.00, indicating a potential upside of 194.71%. Given Ryanair’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Ryanair is more favorable than Air France-KLM.
Volatility & Risk
Ryanair has a beta of 1.41, suggesting that its stock price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Air France-KLM has a beta of 1.5, suggesting that its stock price is 50% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Ryanair beats Air France-KLM on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Ryanair
Ryanair Holdings plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides scheduled-passenger airline services in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, and internationally. It is also involved in the provision of various ancillary services, such as non-flight scheduled and Internet-related services, as well as in-flight sale of beverages, food, duty-free, and merchandise; and markets car hire, travel insurance, and accommodation services through its website and mobile app. In addition, the company offers aircraft and passenger handling, ticketing, and maintenance and repair services; and markets car parking, fast-track, airport transfers, attractions, and activities on its website and mobile app, as well as sells gift vouchers. Ryanair Holdings plc was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Swords, Ireland.
About Air France-KLM
AIR FRANCE-KLM is an airline company. The Company’s core business is passenger transport, cargo transport, and aircraft maintenance services. The Group is the world leader in terms of international passenger traffic; and its cargo activity (not including integrators) and is one of the world’s major maintenance service providers. The Group structure is simple: a holding company with two airline subsidiaries. Air France-KLM has established a set of clearly defined commitments to ensure that its strategy of profitable growth goes hand in hand with environmental quality and social progress.
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