During a Wednesday press briefing, Michael O'Leary, the CEO of Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: RYAAY), addressed the recent public exchanges with billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, observing that the controversy has unexpectedly benefited Ryanair through increased bookings. O'Leary highlighted the airline's reasons for not adopting Musk's Starlink satellite internet technology across its fleet and invited Musk to consider investing in Ryanair, positing the airline as a superior investment compared to Musk’s recent acquisition of X, previously Twitter.
O'Leary outlined the factors influencing Ryanair’s decision against implementing Starlink internet services. The installation costs and potential operational inefficiencies, primarily increased aerodynamic drag leading to higher fuel consumption, weighed significantly. The airline anticipates an annual fuel bill increase estimated between €100 million and €200 million if Starlink were adopted fleetwide, which the airline considers economically unjustifiable.
The decision sparked a heated exchange on X, Elon Musk’s social media platform, earlier in the week. Musk publicly criticized O'Leary, referring to him as “an utter idiot” in response to Ryanair’s stance against Starlink. Musk also suggested the possibility of acquiring Ryanair and replacing O'Leary as CEO with an individual humorously named “Ryan.”
Responding to Musk’s provocative remarks, O'Leary expressed gratitude for the unintended publicity generated for Ryanair. He referenced a recent seat sale promotion labeled the “great idiots” sale, which experienced an unprecedented response with three to four million hits. O'Leary also extended a complimentary ticket offer to Musk, underscoring the “wonderful” boost in public attention that has translated into a noticeable uplift in bookings. Over the past five days, Ryanair experienced a 2% to 3% increase in booking volumes.
Regarding potential investment opportunities, O'Leary welcomed Musk’s interest in becoming a shareholder. He reminded that as a publicly traded company, Ryanair’s shares are accessible for investment by anyone, including Musk, though he noted legal restrictions preclude non-European citizens from holding a majority stake in European airlines. O'Leary made a pointed comparison, contending that Ryanair represents "a very good investment," and notably “a significantly better investment” than Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of X.
In line with these developments, Ryanair's stock performance has reflected investor confidence amid the high-profile discussions. Over the preceding week, shares increased by 2.83% amid speculation regarding Musk’s acquisition proposal. On Wednesday alone, Ryanair’s stock saw a further rise of 1.37%, closing at $70.45, and maintained upward momentum with an additional 3.89% gain overnight. According to Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings, Ryanair scores strongly in Momentum and Value categories, showing favorable trends across short, medium, and long-term price analyses.
The unfolding interactions between Ryanair’s leadership and Elon Musk have thus contributed to elevated market interest and reservation levels for the airline amid public scrutiny over technological integration and investment appeal. Ryanair’s management remains committed to evaluating operational and financial impacts meticulously while maintaining openness to investment from interested parties, including Musk himself.