Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $156.17 and last traded at $156.55, with a volume of 352127 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $158.93.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Vail Resorts from $216.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $176.00 to $166.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vail Resorts from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on Vail Resorts from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Vail Resorts from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.50.

Vail Resorts Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $175.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $177.31. The firm has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The company reported ($4.61) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($4.99) by $0.38. The company had revenue of $260.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $251.45 million. Vail Resorts had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 21.90%. Vail Resorts’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($4.60) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Vail Resorts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $2.22 per share. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. Vail Resorts’s payout ratio is 147.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vail Resorts

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vail Resorts during the fourth quarter worth $80,669,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Vail Resorts by 170.1% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 546,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,427,000 after buying an additional 344,095 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Vail Resorts by 606.6% during the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 341,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,487,000 after buying an additional 293,006 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Vail Resorts by 42.1% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 976,468 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,039,000 after buying an additional 289,484 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vail Resorts in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,532,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by 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.