Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Trims Stake in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. reduced its position in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,378 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Vail Resorts were worth $721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vail Resorts by 14,502.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 48,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,255,000 after purchasing an additional 47,712 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Vail Resorts in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,533,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Vail Resorts by 2,451.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 417,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,931,000 after buying an additional 400,941 shares in the last quarter. Galibier Capital Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Vail Resorts during the fourth quarter worth $3,932,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Vail Resorts by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 74,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,925,000 after acquiring an additional 3,278 shares in the last quarter. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Vail Resorts from $242.00 to $229.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Vail Resorts in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $263.00 price target on shares of Vail Resorts in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Bank of America downgraded shares of Vail Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $285.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vail Resorts from $252.00 to $243.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vail Resorts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $260.11.

Vail Resorts Stock Down 1.2 %

MTN stock opened at $199.02 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a PE ratio of 33.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.11. Vail Resorts, Inc. has a 52 week low of $198.26 and a 52 week high of $258.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $223.05 and a 200 day moving average of $220.90.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The company reported $5.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by ($0.31). The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. Vail Resorts had a return on equity of 19.16% and a net margin of 8.44%. The business’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Vail Resorts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $2.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This is a positive change from Vail Resorts’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.46%. Vail Resorts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 148.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Peter A. Vaughn sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.77, for a total transaction of $222,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,691,269.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

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.