The week in business: Ryanair Q1 results and Hibernia Reit’s agm

Apple, Merck, Pfizer and Mastercard all due to report results

Monday

Results: Bank of Ireland, Ryanair.

Indicators: Irish industrial production by sector (2018); UK Nationwide housing prices (Jul), net lending to individuals (Jun), mortgage lending (Jun).

Ryanair’s fortunes firmly played down

Ahead of its Q1 results on Monday, Ryanair’s fortunes were being firmly played down. The company is not always, it seems, a goose laying golden eggs but, at the same time, Ryanair’s misfortunes are never cause for prolonged concern.

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Ahead of the results, Davy said it was expecting a profit decline of more than 20 per cent on the same quarter last year with net income of just under €240 million. This will be driven, it said in its note, by higher fuel and ex-fuel costs. There are other irritants too – soft UK demand, perceived excess supply and yes, that ongoing issue with Boeing’s 737 MAX deliveries.

Ryanair is never far from the news. Earlier this month, it cut its own growth forecasts in passenger numbers and, with the ongoing MAX fiasco, is considering base cuts and closures.

Chief executive Michael O’Leary said the airline hoped to receive its first Max200 aircraft between January and February next. However, as it is only able to take delivery of six to eight new aircraft per month, it decided to plan its summer 2020 schedule based on taking up to 30 B737 MAX aircraft deliveries up to end of May 2020.

Tuesday

Results: Apple, Mondelez, Merck, Pfizer, AerCap, Forterra, Heidelberg Cement, Lufthansa, Under Armour, Ralph Lauren, Procter & Gamble, Xerox, Groupon, Mastercard.

Indicators: Irish unemployment (Jul); Euro zone business confidence (Jul), consumer confidence (Jul), services, industrial and economic sentiment (Jul), consumer inflation expectations (Jul); German consumer confidence (Aug), inflation (Jul); US personal spending (Jun), PCE price index (Jun), consumer confidence (Jul).

Wednesday

Results: Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Lloyds Banking Group, Kennedy Wilson, Air France KLM, Ibstock, LafargeHolcim, Lloyds Banking Group, Smurfit Kappa, Taylor Wimpey, Travis Perkins, Molson Coors Brewing, Fitbit, Spotify.

Indicators: Euro zone GDP growth (Q2), inflation (Jul), unemployment (Jun); UK consumer confidence (Jul); German retail sales (Jun), unemployment (Jul).

Meetings: US Fed interest rate decision; Hibernia Reit agm (Townhall, 1WML, Windmill Lane, Dublin 2)

Reit to meet in prosperous times for property investors

Hibernia Reit's agm on Wednesday comes at an interesting and prosperous time for property investors. Ireland, and particularly Dublin, remains firmly in the grip of a demand-led sector and that is likely to continue, given the need for rental space.

Recent figures showed that dividends paid by the real-estate investment trusts (Reits) rose almost tenfold to €93.5 million over the four years to 2018. The four major Reits listed on the Irish Stock Exchange – Green, Hibernia, Yew Grove and I-Res – own about €3.7 billion worth of property.

In May, Hibernia reported higher profits and rental income for the year to the end of March and said it had positive predictions for future performance in the office market.

Profit before tax was €124 million, up from €107 million the previous year. Its portfolio was valued at about €1.4 billion, up almost 8 per cent for the year.

In April it announced its intention to return €35 million it made from selling 77 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, a Dublin office block, beginning with a €25 million share buyback.

Thursday

Results: Crocs, Kellogg, General Motors, Kraft Heinz, GoPro, Motorola.

Indicators: Euro zone manufacturing PMI (Jul); UK manufacturing PMI (Jul); German manufacturing PMI (Jul); US manufacturing PMI (Jul), construction spending (Jun), vehicle sales (Jul).

Meetings: Bank of England interest rate decision.

Friday

Results: RBS, Exxon Mobil.

Indicators: Euro zone retail sales (Jun), PPI (Jun); UK construction PMI (Jul); US unemployment (Jul), non-farm payrolls (Jul), manufacturing payrolls (Jul), exports and imports (Jun), factory orders (Jun).