Ryanair remains well positioned to compete against newer entrants, analysts said. EasyJet, its closest rival, has per-passenger costs that are 40 percent to 50 percent higher than Ryanair's, Mattimoe said.
In the conference call, O'Leary tried to forestall any attacks on his aggressive strategy.
"There will be a lot of analysis that says we grew too fast, that 60 percent capacity growth this year was much too much," he said. "To which I would answer, well, we did 55 percent capacity growth last year and we did a 59 percent increase in profits."
Ryanair recently established new hubs outside Rome, and Barcelona, Spain, and half the airline's 146 routes are less than a year old. From May onward, its capacity will grow 20 percent a year instead of 50 percent, O'Leary said.
Even if the profit warning does not signal a weakness in Ryanair's business model or a failure stemming from its rapid expansion, analysts said the airline was likely to face a period of more modest performance until, as it hopes, its new competitors drop out of the market.
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