Panmure Liberum has cut its target price for Wizz Air Holdings PLC (AIM:WIZZ) despite the budget airline lifting profit guidance, arguing that the upgrade does little to change a tougher picture for the carrier.
The broker reiterated its SELL recommendation and lowered its target to 480p from 525p, compared with Wizz Air’s last closing price of 981.5p.
Wizz Air said in an unscheduled update that it now expects results for the year to March 2026 to land between breakeven and a small net profit, effectively reversing the profit warning it issued in March.
At that point, the airline had estimated a €50 million hit from the Middle East conflict versus its January guidance range, which had pointed to a post-tax result between a €25 million loss and a €25 million profit.
Panmure said the latest guidance now puts Wizz in the upper half of that original January range, helped by what management described as “stronger underlying revenue and a well-hedged macroeconomic mix.”
The broker was not persuaded that the better exit point says much about the year ahead. “Better guidance for the FY just ended has little relevance given the dramatic change in the trading environment driven by the Middle East conflict, and the company’s record of using non-underlying one-offs to hit guidance in the past,” analyst Gerald Khoo said.
