Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $151.50, but opened at $170.33. Vail Resorts shares last traded at $171.30, with a volume of 763,297 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MTN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $185.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Macquarie lowered their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley set a $152.00 target price on shares of Vail Resorts in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $152.00 target price (down previously from $165.00) on shares of Vail Resorts in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $227.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vail Resorts presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $187.60.

Vail Resorts Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $146.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.37, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.91.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The company reported $6.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.14 billion. Vail Resorts had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 21.90%. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.76 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vail Resorts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 27th were issued a $2.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 27th. This represents a $8.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.19%. Vail Resorts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 130.21%.

Insider Activity at Vail Resorts

In related news, CFO Angela A. Korch acquired 185 shares of Vail Resorts stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $160.00 per share, for a total transaction of $29,600.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 2,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $472,960. This represents a 6.68% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vail Resorts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SouthState Corp purchased a new stake in Vail Resorts in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Vail Resorts in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Vail Resorts by 246.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Vail Resorts by 102.5% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Vail Resorts in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Vail Resorts

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.