Wizz Air takes off as Goldman Sachs upgrades it to 'buy'
Goldman Sachs upgraded shares in Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air to ‘buy’ from ‘neutral’ and raised its price target to 2100p from 1753p.
easyJet
538.20p
16:40 26/04/24
FTSE 100
8,139.83
17:09 26/04/24
FTSE 250
19,824.16
16:59 26/04/24
FTSE 350
4,470.09
16:59 26/04/24
FTSE All-Share
4,423.59
17:14 26/04/24
Ryanair Holdings
€15.20
18:30 22/01/21
Travel & Leisure
7,572.38
16:59 26/04/24
Wizz Air Holdings
2,198.00p
16:35 26/04/24
“We see Wizz as very well positioned to continue growing profitably in Central Eastern Europe (CEE) capitalizing on a solid CEE macro environment, low CEE air travel penetration and market share gains from poorly positioned local carriers,” said Goldman.
The investment bank also feels the de-rating in the shares after the Brexit referendum creates an attractive entry point for the airline among competitiors like Ryanair and Easyjet.
Following the company’s recent results the bank increased its full year 2017-19 earnings per share (EPS) by 13% and added it to the Central & Eastern, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) Focus List with 24% upside potential.
Monthly traffic statistics should continue to show strong growth with robust load factor trends and there is potential for the exit of weak CEE incumbents, especially if oil prices rise or competition intensifies, according to the analysts.
The bank sees the airline as a strategic asset with a unique CEE network and industry leading cost per seat, below that of rival Ryanair, and see merger and acquisition optionality in the long-run.
Wizz Air’s share price rose 3.46% to 1,734p at 1030 GMT on Thursday.