Ryanair Holdings plans a share buyback worth 700 million euros ($760.9 million) as profits rise. The Irish budget airline also expects an increase in passenger numbers this year, depending on how Boeing's delivery delays are handled.

The Company Stated That Passenger Numbers Could Increase by 8% to 198 Million to 200 Million, Assuming That Boeing Deliveries Return to the Contractually Agreed Level. Ryanair Reported That 23 Boeing Aircraft Are Still Missing.

"The risk remains that Boeing deliveries could be further delayed," said the company, adding that such delays could lead to traffic growth occurring more in the less profitable second half of the year than originally planned.

The short-haul capacity for summer will also be limited due to engine maintenance of many Airbus aircraft in Europe, Ryanair added.

Nonetheless, the demand for flights in the summer was positive, as bookings were on trend compared to the previous year, although the recent prices were weaker than expected. Ryanair added that summer prices are expected to remain at the level of last summer or slightly above.

The revenue exceeded analysts' expectations for the fiscal year marked by strikes by European air traffic controllers and hundreds of flight cancellations in March due to the Israel-Hamas crisis.

The adjusted profit after taxes – the company's preferred metric – amounted to 1.92 billion euros, which corresponds to an increase of 34% compared to the previous year, with a revenue increase of 25% to 13.44 billion euros.

Analysts had expected revenue of 13.37 billion euros according to a consensus by Visible Alpha. In January, Ryanair had forecast an adjusted after-tax profit ranging from 1.85 billion to 1.95 billion euros.

Ryanair announced that the share buyback will begin this week after average fares, revenue per passenger, and ancillary income have increased.

In the past year, nearly 184 million passengers flew with Ryanair, which corresponds to an increase of 9%, while the load factor - a measure of how full an aircraft is - was at 94%, compared with 93% in the previous year.

Performance for the current fiscal year will depend on whether events such as the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, air travel disruptions, or further Boeing delivery delays can be avoided. However, it is still too early to provide a financial forecast, it was said.