Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) by 98.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,094 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,704,957 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.10% of Vail Resorts worth $8,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MTN. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Vail Resorts by 1.0% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,807,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,716,000 after purchasing an additional 17,432 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Vail Resorts by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 441,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,470,000 after acquiring an additional 24,456 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the 4th quarter worth $85,704,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Vail Resorts by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 259,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,347,000 after acquiring an additional 6,336 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vail Resorts by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 232,804 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,697,000 after purchasing an additional 3,383 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Vail Resorts Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE MTN traded up $3.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $184.65. 393,036 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 452,351. The business has a 50 day moving average of $182.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $205.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.12, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.14. Vail Resorts, Inc. has a 1 year low of $165.14 and a 1 year high of $254.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 6th. The company reported $9.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.94 by ($0.40). The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Vail Resorts had a net margin of 9.59% and a return on equity of 23.41%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vail Resorts Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 25th were paid a $2.22 dividend. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 25th. Vail Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is 120.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on MTN. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Vail Resorts from $262.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 7th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Vail Resorts from $256.00 to $231.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Vail Resorts from $229.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Vail Resorts from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $217.00 to $176.00 in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Vail Resorts from $201.00 to $161.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vail Resorts has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vail Resorts news, CFO Angela A. Korch bought 575 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $176.20 per share, with a total value of $101,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,330.20. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate 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.