Introduction
WIZZ Air is an ultra-low-cost airline that was incorporated in 2003 and commenced operations in 2004. The company’s head office is located in Budapest, Hungary with branches in five other locations. WIZZ Air has managed to build a successful business centered on its mission of offering inexpensive travel alternatives to discover Europe and beyond. In less than two years the company has managed to beat the competition and negative perceptions to become Europe’s rapidly growing and environmentally conscious airline (wizzair.com, n.d.). The brand is grounded on five main core values: exclusivity, positivity, dedication, integrity, and sustainability. It also guarantees safety and security, which are critical considerations in the aviation industry.
WIZZ Air has grown in fleet number to over 120 modern airbuses with an average age of 4.7 years. The company flies across 842 routes leading into 151 airports in 44 countries. It employs over 4,500 professionals and is continually searching for openings to broaden its network of destinations and offer low-cost air travel in Europe, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe (Centreforaviation.com, n.d.). The company reached its highest passenger number in 2020 when it carried over 40 million people.
The airline industry spans many components touching on different segments of an economy, such as the environment, employment, employee management, human rights, and social impact, among others. The focus of this report is on the financial review of a company’s operations. The company’s performance will be compared to Ryanair, a close rival in the ultra-low-cost airline market. Ryan air has been in operation for a longer period having been established in 1984. The company’s head office is in Swords, Dublin, Republic of Ireland, and has two main operational centers in Dublin and London. Ryan air operates over 200 daily flights across 225 airports and 86 bases in Europe. It has established a footprint in 37 countries and employs over 15,000 individuals. In 2020 Ryan air provide flight service to over 149 million people (that is projected to grow to over 200 million by 2026) by means of its 672 fleet number, consisting of 422 Boeing 737 airplanes and 29 A320 airbuses.
The financial year 2021 was highly challenging for the majority of business enterprises across most segments of the economy due to the COVID-19 pandemic (Baruti, 2021). Jurisdictions across the globe imposed regulatory restrictions that severely affected virtually all facets of WIZZ Air’s operations (Puławska, 2020). The impact of the disease is evidenced by the decline in financial performance in 2021 compared to 2020. A detailed review of the financial impact on the two companies is described in the following parts of the financial analysis.
Operating and Pre-tax Results
During 2021, WIZZ Air carried ten million passengers, compared to 40 million in 2020, a 75 per cent decline. The trend shows a decline of 75 per cent that was replicated in the revenue earned in 2021 (Statista, n.d.). The company revenues declined by 73 per cent to €739 million in 2021 from €2,761.3 million in 2020. Ryan air also reported a decline in passenger numbers by 81 per cent from 149 million in financial year 2020 to 27.5 million in 2021, leading to a 81 percent fall in revenue (Ryanair, 2021). The fall in passenger numbers and revenue symbolize the sharp cut back in the airline’s capacity throughout the year. The effect was a result of restrictions imposed by policy makers across Europe to curtain movement of people in an effort to derail the spread of the novice COVID-19.
Taking into account the tough operating business environment, WIZZ Air undertook different adjustments on all balance sheet and income statement lines with the aim of managing costs, reducing cash burn and maintaining an investment grade balance sheet (Danisman, 2018). As a result of the quick and definitive intervention, the company recorded one of the powerful financial positions in the aviation industry across Europe. The company recorded a net loss of €576.0 million and an underlying net loss of €482.4 million, compared to an underlying profit of €344.8 million in financial year 2020.
The company also reported on a decline in the operating profit from €338 million in 2020 to an operating loss of €528 million in 2021. Further, the total operating expenses excluding exceptional expenses went down by 50.3 per cent from €2,359.3 million in 2020 to €1,173.4 million in 2021. The decline was largely driven by reduced salary payments to the office employees and the flying crew, headcount reduction, and a decrease in variable pay components (Thendean & Layadi, 2019). Without doubt, reduced operations and passenger numbers would cause a fall in fuel expenses, which declined by 68.8 per cent down to €253.8 million in 2021 from €812.8 million in 2020. The main driver for the fall was a decline in Available Seat Kilometers (ASK) of 63.5 per cent and reduced cost of fuel. In 2021, WIZZ Air spent $674.0 per tonne down from $729.1 per tonne in 2020. This represents a 75 per cent decline in average fuel price, including hedging impact and into-plane premium. Ryan air reported an operating profit of 1.1 billion euros in 2020 and an operating loss of 839 million euros in 2021. The company further reported a decline in operation coats by 66 percent from €7.367m in 2020 to €2.475 in 2021 (Ryanair, 2021). Specifically, the staff expenses plummeted by 42.7 per cent from €231.8 million in 2020 to €132.9 million in 2021.
Furthermore, the average Euro/US Dollar exchange rate, after factoring in the effect of hedging was 1.17 in 2021 compared to a rate of 1.16 in 2020. The result of effective fuel hedges was a €93.6 million loss in 2021 measured against a gain of €43.5 million in 2020. WIZZ Air also reported a decline in the marketing and distribution expenses of 55.5 per cent from €44.1 million in 2020 to €19.6 million in 2021 propelled by ASK reduction of 63.5 per cent in 2021. The materials, maintenance, and repairs expenses fell by 6.1 per cent to €165.7 million in 2021 from €176.4 million in 2020. Maintenance expenses are principally connected to the size of the fleet, aircraft utilization, and pre-set maintenance schedules.
Additionally, reduced operations had a negative effect on airport, handling and en-route charges the went down by by 60.3 per cent to €254.9 million in 2021 from €641.6 million in 2020. This decrease was mainly due to a fall in both the passenger numbers and the airline’s capacity by 74.6 per cent and 62.8 per cent, respectively. The company further reported a decline in amortization and depreciation expenses by 9.5 per cent from €381.4 million in 2020 to €345.3 million in 2021. The decrease was as a result of the variable component of depreciation that is founded on number of flight hours.
The other expenses declined to €1.2 million in 2021 due to changes in various leaseback dealings and aircraft asset sale. These expenses mainly include spending on passenger welfare and compensation, office overhead and crew-related expenses other than direct staff expenses, aviation and other insurance costs, and company credits that cannot be classified as income from clients. WIZZ Air reported a decline in unit revenue measured in terms of ASKs by 26.7 per cent to 2.89 Euro cents in 2021. On the converse, unit costs went up by 41.3 per cent to 4.85 Euro cents in 2021 from 3.44 Euro cents in 2020. Cost of Available Seat Kilometers (CASK) excluding fuel expenses, went up by 69.8 per cent to 3.86 Euro cents in 2021 from 2.27 Euro cents in 2020 (wizzair.com, n.d.). This increase was principally propelled by the fixed nature of the cost lines even after incisive cost activities, which, as a result of reduced ASKs resulting in higher unit expenses.
Table 1. Operating and pre-tax results
The operating profit margin indicates the profit generated from the sales revenue less the operating expenses. The operating margin of WIZZ Air for 2020 is 13.9 per cent, which is slightly higher than 13.3 per cent reports by Ryan air. Even as both companies reports an operating loss in 2021, WIZZ Air had a much higher loss at 71.5 per cent whereas Ryan air reported a loss at 51.3 per cent. The net profit margin is the amount of gain or loss gained by a company after taking away all expenses from the total revenues generated. WIZZ Air and Ryan air has a net margin of 10.2 per cent and 7.6 per cent, respectively in 2020. The following year both companies reports a net loss at the rate of 77.9 per cent and 64.3 per cent, in that order. The outcomes by the operating margin and net margin show a tight competition on profitability between the two companies, particularly under normal operating environment. However, WIZZ Air performance under the COVID-19 crisis is worse in contrast to Ryan air. Ryan air has been in operation for over three decades and has built a stronger resilience to economic shifts compared to WIZZ Air that has been operating for slightly under two decades.
Return on Capital and Shareholders’ Equity
Return on capital employed (ROCE) is a non-statutory performance measure normally used to gauge the profitability of a business. It is a factor of the financial returns that a company can generate using its capital base. In 2021 WIZZ Air reported a lower ROCE of 19.4 percent compared to 20.8 percent for the financial year 2020. Nonetheless, the Company upheld its investment-grade credit rating by Fitch (BBB-) and Moody’s (Baa3) (Dyckman, 2017). This indicates that the company has a low expectations for default and has sufficient ability to meet its financial commitments. Ryan air has a better investment grade credit rating of BBB, showing a better prospect to repay its loans than WIZZ Air.
Shareholders’ equity indicates a company’s net worth, which is the amount of funds invested by the owners in the business. It is commonly denoted by the difference between the total assets and total liabilities. The balance sheet indicates that the shareholders’ equity comprises three main components; retained earnings, common shares, and preference shares (Wijayanto, 2021). The owners of the company always desire to know the return earned on the invested amount, which is shown by the return on shareholders’ equity ratio. The ratio shows the proportion of the net income to the amount of money invested or retained in the company. In contrast to the positive return of 22.8 percent in 2020, WIZZ Air reported a negative return on shareholders’ equity of 64.5% in 2021. The outcome demonstrates that a drop in operations is the reason for the company’s declining profitability.
Table 2. Return on Capital, Investment & Equity
The results in table 2 above show that WIZZ Air had better working capital in both 2020 and 2021, at 250.6 million pounds and 354.1 million pounds, respectively. Ryan air had negative working capital of 1.0143 billion pounds and negative 68.6 million pounds, respectively. Both companies reported enhanced working capital in 2021 due to additional funds borrowed from different channels. Ryan air brags of having almost five times in net assets compared to WIZZ Air. In 2020 and 2021 its net assets were 4.9145 billion pounds and 4.6466 billion pounds, respectively. WIZZ Air net assets for the two periods were periods1.2348 billion pounds and 903.7 million pounds respectively. Both companies also reported a decline in net assets from 2020 to 2021.
Additionally, WIZZ Air reported a ROIC of 11.1 per cent in 2020 and negative 15.4 per cent in 2021. Ryan air also reported a decline in ROIC from 12.2 per cent in 2020 to negative 9.5 per cent in 2021. Similarly, there was a drop in ROE from 22.8 per cent for WIZZ Air and 13.2 per cent for Ryan air in 2020 to negative 63.5 per cent and negative 21.8 per cent in 2021 for WIZZ Air and Ryan air, respectively. The decline in performance is attributed to a fall in revenue as passenger numbers dwindled for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ryan air showed better resilience in performance as WIZZ Air reported greater decline in both ROIC and ROE.
WIZZ Air reported EPS of 3.8 pounds in 2020 that declined to negative 6.7 pounds in 2021. Ryan air also reported a decline in EPS from 0.6 pounds in 2020 to negative 0.9 pounds in 2021. Both companies did not pay any dividends in the two consecutive financial periods. The net asset value for WIZZ Air and Ryan air declined from 57.6 and 13.2 in 2020 to 55.2 and 11.1 in 2021, respectively. The P/E ratio for WIZZ Air and Ryan air also fell from 613.6 and 105.8 in 2020 to negative territory in 2021 at 717.6 and 129.8, respectively. Despite a decline in profitability, both companies reported a boost in market capitalization. WIZZ Air reported a significant increase from 172.3 billion in 2020 to 412.5 billion in 2021. Ryan air reported an increase in market capitalization from 70.7 billion in 2020 to 129.8 billion in 2021.
Solvency
Solvency refers to the ability of the company’s to pay for its financial commitments, mainly in the long term. It is defined by the company’s assets and liabilities meaning that it needs adequate assets relative to its liabilities. Ross et al. (2021) state that any business should aim to have twice as many assets as liabilities for a ratio of 2:1. WIZZ Air had 4.4 billion euros in asset value in 2020 that went up to 4.7 billion euros in 2021. Its value of liabilities for 2020 and 2021 was 3.1 billion euros and 3.8 billion euros, respectively. The company had an assets to liabilities ratio of 1.2 in 2021 compared to 1.4 in financial year 2020, signaling a decline in solvency. In 2020 and 2021, Ryan air reported an assets to liabilities ratio of 1.5 and 1.6, respectively, which was higher compared to WIZZ Air for both reporting periods. The company had a higher value of assets and liabilities at 14.7 billion euros in 2020 and 12.3 billion euros in 2021. Its liabilities were 9.8 billion euros in 2020 and 7.7 billion euros in 2021.
Table 3.Solvency ratios
The liquidity ratios point to a decline in liquidity for WIZZ Air while Ryan air improved its liquidity from 2020 to 2021. WIZZ Air reported a decline in current ratio and quick ratio from 1.9 in 2020 to 1.3 in 2021. Ryan air reported a better current ratio and quick ratio from 0.8 in 2020 to 1 in 2021. The interest cover for WIZZ Air declined from 3.7 in 2021 to negative 6.7 in 2021. Likewise, the interest cover for Ryan air plummeted from 2.3 in 2020 to negative 2.7 in 2021.
WIZZ Air debt-equity ratio improved from 1.4 in 2020 to 2.6 in 2021 and the gearing ratio slightly improved from 0.6 in 2020 to 0.7 in 2021. Also Ryan air realized better debt-equity and gearing ratio from 0.7 and 0.4 for 2020 to 0.8 for both ratios in 2021, respectively. This trend points to enhanced solvency for both companies. Overall, WIZZ Air performed better in 2020 but the crisis affected it much more as its performance in 2021 was poorer compared to Ryan air.
Financing
The financial year 2021 was distinctive in WIZZ Air’s 17-year history in the aviation industry due to the heavy impact of the COVID-19 related containment measures. The pandemic necessitated passenger airlines around the globe to go into protracted hibernation to withstand the impact that called for extensive financial assistance. The company suffered a loss of revenue that went down by 73 per cent for the financial year 2021 leading to a net loss of €576 million. Irrespective of the tough operating environment, WIZZ Air demonstrated incredibly strong resilience all through the year (Williams & Haka, 2018). The company permeated the pandemic from a position of stability buoyed by healthy liquidity, a robust balance sheet, a culture of entrepreneurship, and a low-cost business model.
WIZZ Air was able to sustain a strong cash position because of the ultra-low-cost base. This enabled the company to undergo periods of intense business interruption for a stretched period than other airlines in terms of cash burn (Elliot, 2022; Higgins, 2017). The company also leveraged on this position to operate cash-positive flights serving clients and supporting its cash position in times of limited demand. The COVID-19 pandemic proved to be challenging and the company had to support its liquidity position by raising £300 million from the Bank of England. The amount was raised under the UK Government’s COVID Corporate Financing Facility (UK-CCFF) (Veselinova, 2021). The bond was expected to mature in February 2022 having been rolled over by twelve months in February 2021. In addition, on 19 January 2021, through Wizz Air Finance Company B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of Wizz Air Holdings Plc., a further €500.0 million was raised from a 1.35 per cent Eurobond. The facility was entirely and irrevocably guaranteed by WIZZ Air under the €3,000.0 million EMTN program and is expected to mature in January 2024. The total sum was raised on incredibly competitive terms with no material burden on the company’s cost structure. Ryan air also leveraged on the strength of it’s balance sheet to raise additional funds amounting to €1.95bn. The company raised €850m from the Eurobond, €400m from additional shareholding, and £600m from the UK-CCFF (Ryanair, 2021). It also acquired an additional €1.2bn by placing 5-year unsecured, bonds at a very low coupon rate of 0.875 percent.
As a result of the additional funds, WIZZ Air had a net cash from financing activities inflow of €624.6 million inflow in 2021 compared to an outflow of €93.7 million in 2020. The net inflow was also due to proceeds from new loan that added a further €195.6 million in 2021 and €297.7 million inflow in financial year 2020. The amount was sourced from the JOLCO financing to fund the acquisition of several new aircraft. During 2021, the repayment of loans plus interest payment on the loans amounted to €410.2 million compared to €392.8 million in 2020. The amount was €17.4 million especially due to aircraft and spare engine leasing payments made, under International Finance Reporting Standard (IFRS) 16.
Conclusion
WIZZ Air has built a strong and ultra-low-cost-base that has propelled it to become Europe’s rapidly growing and environmentally conscious airline. However, the airline faces stiff competition from Ryan Air, an established ultra-low cost airline in the region. Financial year 2021 proved to be challenging for the companies as jurisdictions across Europe imposed regulatory restrictions to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely affected the airlines operations. As a result, WIZZ Air the passenger numbers fell by 75 percent from 40 million in 2020 to 10 million in 2021. Also Ryan Air reports a decline in passenger numbers by 81 percent from 149 million in 2020 to 27.5 million in 2021. WIZZ Air reported a decline in revenues by 73 per cent to €739 million in 2021 from €2,761.3 million in 2020. The company recorded a net loss of €576.0 million and an underlying net loss of €482.4 million in 2021, compared to an underlying profit of €344.8 million in financial year 2020.
The return on capital employed went down from 20.8 percent for the financial year 2020 to 19.8 percent in 2021. WIZZ Air also reported a negative return on shareholders’ equity of 64.5 per cent in 2021 compared to a positive return of 22.8 per cent recorded in 2020. The result shows a decline in the company’s profitability attributed to a decline in operations. In 2021 WIZZ Air had an assets to liabilities ratio of 1.2 compared to 1.4 in financial year 2020, signaling a decline in solvency. Ryan Air has a lower assets to liabilities ratio of 1:1 in 2021. Both companies raised additional finances in 2021 to help it manage the business impact of the the COVID-19 pandemic. WIZZ Air raised a total of £800 million from the UK-CCFF and a 1.35 percent Eurobond. Ryan Air raised a total of €1.95bn from new share issue, UK-CCFF, and 0.875 percent Eurobond. The additional funds were acquired based on the company’s strong balance sheets and favorable credit rating.
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