Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Invests $526,000 in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 2,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $526,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MTN. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vail Resorts in the 4th quarter worth $85,704,000. APG Asset Management US Inc. acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,684,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,645,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the 1st quarter valued at about $14,669,000. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Vail Resorts during the 4th quarter valued at about $14,011,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MTN. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Vail Resorts from $229.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Vail Resorts from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $217.00 to $176.00 in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Barclays dropped their price target on Vail Resorts from $201.00 to $161.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Vail Resorts from $262.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Vail Resorts from $244.00 to $226.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vail Resorts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.50.

Vail Resorts Stock Performance

Shares of MTN traded down $2.44 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $182.01. The company had a trading volume of 274,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 550,408. Vail Resorts, Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.14 and a 52-week 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $181.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $205.09.

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

Vail Resorts Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 25th were paid a $2.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 25th. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.88%. Vail Resorts’s payout ratio is 120.82%.

Insider Transactions at Vail Resorts

In related news, CFO Angela A. Korch bought 575 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $176.20 per share, for a total transaction of $101,315.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $206,330.20. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Vail Resorts Profile

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.