Vail Resorts reports 95 percent spike in 2Q earnings

BROOMFIELD – Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) this week reported a 95 percent boost in earnings for its second fiscal quarter versus the same period a year ago.

The Broomfield-based company, which operates several U.S. ski resorts including Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone and Beaver Creek in Colorado, reported $115.8 million, or $3.10 per share, in net income for the period ending Jan. 31. That’s compared to $59.3 million, or $1.60 per share, the year before. Quarterly revenue increased from $452.7 million last year to $530.2 million this year.

The company also announced that the board of directors approved a 50-percent increase in the quarterly cash dividend, from 41.5 cents per share to 62.25 cents per share beginning with the dividend payable April 15 for stockholders of record on March 31.

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The company’s stock was up more than 3 percent Friday afternoon to $96.29 per share after climbing nearly 10 percent Thursday following the earnings report.

The strong results came despite worse-than-expected numbers at the company’s Lake Tahoe-area resorts in California and Nevada due to low snowfall that depressed skier visits. The Colorado resorts performed well in the quarter despite slightly depressed skier visits at Vail and Beaver Creek due to hosting the 2015 World Alpine Championships in February.

Total lift revenue increased 22.5 percent to $239.3 million for the quarter versus a year ago due in large part to an increase in lift ticket sales excluding season pass sales. Season pass revenue, however, was also up 21 percent. The addition of Park City in Utah also helped bolster the figures.

CEO Rob Katz said Vail Resorts plans to spend about $50 million this year to connect the Park City and Canyons resorts in Utah to create the largest resort in the United States based on skiable acreage. That’s in addition to $60 million to $65 million in capital spending planned for its other properties, including upgrading Vail’s Avanti Chair to a six-person high-speed lift, expanding the snowmaking system at Beaver Creek, and adding new snowmaking on Peak 6 at Breckenridge.