Financial Survey: Saker Aviation Services (OTCMKTS:SKAS) and Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY)

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) and Saker Aviation Services (OTCMKTS:SKAS) are both transportation companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, dividends, valuation and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

43.7% of Ryanair shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 37.3% of Saker Aviation Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 34.6% of Saker Aviation Services shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Ryanair and Saker Aviation Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ryanair	16.29%	31.32%	14.50%
Saker Aviation Services	6.08%	-4.66%	-4.33%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Ryanair and Saker Aviation Services”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ryanair	$14.98 billion	2.59	$1.73 billion	$5.20	14.18
Saker Aviation Services	$9.17 million	0.73	$1.25 million	($0.42)	-15.71

Ryanair has higher revenue and earnings than Saker Aviation Services. Saker Aviation Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ryanair, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Ryanair has a beta of 1.26, meaning that its share price is 26% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Saker Aviation Services has a beta of -0.15, meaning that its share price is 115% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Ryanair and Saker Aviation Services, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ryanair	0	3	6	1	2.80
Saker Aviation Services	0	0	0	0	0.00

Ryanair presently has a consensus target price of $76.00, suggesting a potential upside of 3.09%. Given Ryanair’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Ryanair is more favorable than Saker Aviation Services.

Summary

Ryanair beats Saker Aviation Services on 14 of the 15 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 Saker Aviation Services

Saker Aviation Services, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates in the aviation services segment of the general aviation industry in the United States. It serves as the operator of a Downtown Manhattan (New York) Heliport. The company was formerly known as FirstFlight, Inc. and changed its name to Saker Aviation Services, Inc. in September 2009. Saker Aviation Services, Inc. is headquartered in New York, New York.