Marshall Wace LLP Lowers Position in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN)

Marshall Wace LLP decreased its position in Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:MTN - Free Report) by 94.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,832 shares of the company's stock after selling 302,161 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.05% of Vail Resorts worth $3,530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Vail Resorts by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,716,657 shares of the company's stock worth $696,687,000 after acquiring an additional 25,916 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Vail Resorts by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,202,176 shares of the company's stock worth $225,348,000 after purchasing an additional 47,417 shares during the period. First Pacific Advisors LP grew its position in Vail Resorts by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 522,285 shares of the company's stock worth $97,902,000 after purchasing an additional 57,484 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its position in Vail Resorts by 30.2% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 444,344 shares of the company's stock worth $83,292,000 after purchasing an additional 103,033 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vail Resorts during the 4th quarter worth about $80,669,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vail Resorts news, CFO Angela A. Korch bought 185 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $160.00 per share, with a total value of $29,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at $472,960. This trade represents a 6.68 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho cut their price target on Vail Resorts from $227.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Vail Resorts from $166.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $152.00 target price on Vail Resorts in a research report on Friday. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and set a $152.00 target price (down from $165.00) on shares of Vail Resorts in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Macquarie dropped their target price on Vail Resorts from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $187.60.

Vail Resorts Price Performance

MTN stock traded up $0.48 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $141.25. The stock had a trading volume of 504,698 shares, compared to its average volume of 580,744. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.51. Vail Resorts, Inc. has a twelve month low of $129.85 and a twelve month high of $206.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.93. The company's 50-day moving average price is $151.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.32.

Vail Resorts (NYSE:MTN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The company reported $6.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.27. Vail Resorts had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 8.07%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.76 EPS. Vail Resorts's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Vail Resorts, Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vail Resorts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 27th were paid a $2.22 dividend. This represents a $8.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 27th. Vail Resorts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.21%.

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.