Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Sell”

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on MTN. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective (down from $180.00) on shares of Vail Resorts in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $168.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Vail Resorts from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $169.00 price target on shares of Vail Resorts in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Vail Resorts from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vail Resorts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.00.

Vail Resorts Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Vail Resorts stock opened at $137.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.52, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $143.08 and a 200-day moving average of $150.63. Vail Resorts has a 52-week low of $129.41 and a 52-week high of $187.42. The stock has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 10.67 and a beta of 0.81.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 10th. The company reported ($5.20) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($5.23) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $271.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $273.35 million. Vail Resorts had a net margin of 8.94% and a return on equity of 32.51%. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($4.61) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vail Resorts will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Vail Resorts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th will be given a $2.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 30th. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.5%. Vail Resorts’s payout ratio is 130.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vail Resorts

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MTN. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Vail Resorts by 133.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 28,017 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,721,000 after acquiring an additional 16,004 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vail Resorts by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares during the period. Green Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vail Resorts by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 5,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Vail Resorts during the 3rd quarter valued at about $250,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Vail Resorts by 23.4% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

About Vail Resorts

Vail Resorts, Inc is a leading mountain resort company that owns and operates an integrated network of ski areas, hotels, restaurants and retail outlets. The company’s signature Epic Pass program offers skiers and snowboarders season‐long access to its portfolio of resorts, while ancillary services such as ski and snowboard schools, equipment rental and retail drive additional revenue.

Headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, Vail Resorts was formed in 1997, building on the legacy of Vail Associates, which opened the Vail ski area in 1962.