Contrasting Royal Olympic Cruise Lines (OTCMKTS:ROCLF) & Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN)

Royal Olympic Cruise Lines (OTCMKTS:ROCLF) and Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Risk and Volatility

Royal Olympic Cruise Lines has a beta of 2.05, suggesting that its share price is 105% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vail Resorts has a beta of 0.86, suggesting that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Royal Olympic Cruise Lines and Vail Resorts, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Royal Olympic Cruise Lines	0	0	0	0	0.00
Vail Resorts	2	7	3	0	2.08

Vail Resorts has a consensus price target of $174.90, indicating a potential upside of 11.35%. Given Vail Resorts’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Vail Resorts is more favorable than Royal Olympic Cruise Lines.

Profitability

This table compares Royal Olympic Cruise Lines and Vail Resorts’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Royal Olympic Cruise Lines	N/A	N/A	N/A
Vail Resorts	9.45%	31.54%	4.93%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

94.9% of Vail Resorts shares are held by institutional investors. 64.1% of Royal Olympic Cruise Lines shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Vail Resorts shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Royal Olympic Cruise Lines and Vail Resorts”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Royal Olympic Cruise Lines	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Vail Resorts	$2.96 billion	1.97	$230.40 million	$7.41	21.20

Vail Resorts has higher revenue and earnings than Royal Olympic Cruise Lines.

Summary

Vail Resorts beats Royal Olympic Cruise Lines on 8 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Royal Olympic Cruise Lines

Royal Olympic Cruise Lines, Inc. engages in the ownership, operation, and management of a fleet of cruise ships. The company also provides services under management agreements for other cruise vessels, for which a management fee is charged. Its fleet, in 2002, consisted of seven overnight cruise ships, ranging in capacity from approximately 450 to 836 passengers. The geographical areas served by the company include the eastern and western Mediterranean, South and Central America, the Caribbean, South Africa, and the Far East. Its competitors include Costa Crociere SpA, Mediterranean Shipping Cruises Limited, P&O Cruises Limited, and Holland America. The company was founded in 1938 and is based in Piraeus, Greece.

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.