Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) and Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) Critical Survey

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (NASDAQ:CBRL) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Vail Resorts and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vail Resorts	5.20%	22.82%	2.61%
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store	0.95%	4.01%	0.86%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Vail Resorts and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vail Resorts	$2.84 billion	1.77	$280.00 million	$4.14	34.09
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store	$3.32 billion	0.38	$31.67 million	$1.40	39.83

Vail Resorts has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. Vail Resorts is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Vail Resorts pays an annual dividend of $8.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.3%. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Vail Resorts pays out 214.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store pays out 71.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Vail Resorts has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Vail Resorts is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

94.9% of Vail Resorts shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.0% of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Vail Resorts shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Vail Resorts has a beta of 0.76, suggesting that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Vail Resorts and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vail Resorts	3	7	4	0	2.07
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store	3	4	3	2	2.33

Vail Resorts presently has a consensus target price of $145.25, indicating a potential upside of 2.90%. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has a consensus target price of $50.86, indicating a potential downside of 8.79%. Given Vail Resorts’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Vail Resorts is more favorable than Cracker Barrel Old Country Store.

Summary

Vail Resorts beats Cracker Barrel Old Country Store on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. The Lodging segment owns and/or manages various luxury hotels and condominiums under the RockResorts brand; other lodging properties; various condominiums located in proximity to the company's mountain resorts; destination resorts; and golf courses, as well as offers resort ground transportation services. This segment operates owned and managed hotel and condominium units. The Real Estate segment owns, develops, and sells real estate properties. The company was founded in 1845 and is based in Broomfield, Colorado.

About Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. develops and operates the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store concept in the United States. Its Cracker Barrel stores consist of restaurants with a gift shop. The company's restaurants serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily, as well as dine-in, pick-up, and delivery services. Its gift shop offers various decorative and functional items, such as rocking chairs, seasonal gifts, apparel, toys, food, cookware, and various other gift items, as well as various candies, preserves, and other food items. The company was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Lebanon, Tennessee.