Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 37,543 Shares of Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN - Free Report) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,655,436 shares of the company's stock after selling 37,543 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 4.42% of Vail Resorts worth $288,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fairbanks Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Vail Resorts by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Fairbanks Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,563 shares of the company's stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Vail Resorts by 4.6% in the second quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,700 shares of the company's stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Vail Resorts by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 993 shares of the company's stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Vail Resorts by 150.9% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 138 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Vail Resorts by 20.9% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 486 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Angela A. Korch bought 165 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $173.09 per share, with a total value of $28,559.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $378,547.83. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Vail Resorts news, insider Robert A. Katz sold 9,296 shares of Vail Resorts stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.98, for a total transaction of $1,635,910.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 245,961 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,284,216.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Angela A. Korch acquired 165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $173.09 per share, with a total value of $28,559.85. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at $378,547.83. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MTN shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Vail Resorts from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays cut their price objective on Vail Resorts from $161.00 to $155.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Vail Resorts from $218.00 to $194.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com raised Vail Resorts from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Vail Resorts from $223.00 to $216.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vail Resorts has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $208.22.

Vail Resorts Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE MTN traded up $3.53 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $178.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 180,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 522,994. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $176.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.43. Vail Resorts, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.00 and a fifty-two week high of $236.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.93, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The company reported ($4.67) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($4.28) by ($0.39). The business had revenue of $265.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $264.84 million. Vail Resorts had a return on equity of 20.76% and a net margin of 7.99%. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($3.35) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Vail Resorts Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were issued a dividend of $2.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $8.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.99%. Vail Resorts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.26%.

Vail Resorts Company 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.