Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at UBS Group

UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $185.00 price target on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on MTN. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Vail Resorts in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Vail Resorts from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Vail Resorts from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Vail Resorts from $161.00 to $155.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Vail Resorts from $218.00 to $194.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $205.90.

Vail Resorts Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTN traded down $2.10 during trading on Thursday, hitting $176.21. 204,600 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 521,145. Vail Resorts has a 52-week low of $165.00 and a 52-week high of $236.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $175.69 and a 200 day moving average of $180.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a PE ratio of 29.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The company reported ($4.67) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($4.28) by ($0.39). The company had revenue of $265.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $264.84 million. Vail Resorts had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 20.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($3.35) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vail Resorts will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

Vail Resorts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were given a $2.22 dividend. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.04%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 8th. Vail Resorts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.26%.

Insider Transactions at Vail Resorts

In other news, CFO Angela A. Korch bought 165 shares of Vail Resorts stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $173.09 per share, for a total transaction of $28,559.85. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 2,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $378,547.83. This trade represents a 8.16 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert A. Katz sold 9,296 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.98, for a total transaction of $1,635,910.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 245,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,284,216.78. This trade represents a 3.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Vail Resorts by 150.9% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 138 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Vail Resorts in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Vail Resorts by 318.8% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 201 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Vail Resorts by 123.5% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 219 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Vail Resorts Company Profile

Vail Resorts, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates mountain resorts and regional ski areas in the United States. It operates through three segments: Mountain, Lodging, and Real Estate. The Mountain segment operates 41 destination mountain resorts and regional ski areas. This segment is also involved in the ancillary activities, including ski school, dining, and retail/rental operations, as well as real estate brokerage activities.