In this weeks share tip, Edmund Shing argues that despite his usual wariness in investing in airlines, he recommends making an exception in the case of EasyJet [LON:EZJ]. EasyJet is a member of the FTSE MID 250 index, it flies to more than 600 destinations and has more than 217 aircraft today with more on order. Here are five reasons why EasyJet shares are set to soar in the future.
1) Passenger numbers: The number of people flying with EasyJet has been growing around 7% year on year.
2) Load factor: Not only are more people flying with EasyJet, but each flight by the airline is fuller. A load factor of 93% means more profits because fewer seats are empty.
3) Its cheap: EasyJet has a P/E Ration(TTM) of 13.50 (as of 15 October), which is cheaper than the overall FTSE index.
4) Lot of cash reserves: EasyJet is sitting on more than £400m ($619m) of cash, meaning that its a very safe investment.
5) Income yield: If you like income, then EasyJet is a nice dividend payer. It has an income yield of more than 3.7%.
Edmund Shing is Global Head of Equity Derivative Strategy at BNP Paribas in London. He holds a PhD in Artificial Intelligence.
