Vail Resorts Inc

Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince has publicly criticized Vail Resorts' appointment of MGM Resorts International chief Bill Hornbuckle to its board, intensifying tensions as Prince pursues a roughly $500 million offer to acquire Park City Mountain Resort. Vail Resorts announced on July 30, 2026 that Hornbuckle would join as its tenth board member effective August 3, 2026. Prince, a Park City native and former ski instructor, has argued the company underinvests in lift infrastructure, snowmaking, and worker compensation, and has framed safety shortfalls as justification for a community-based acquisition. Vail Resorts has rejected the offer, stating Park City Mountain is not for sale and citing $121 million in capital investment at the resort since 2016. The appointment comes amid reports that Vail Resorts has hired takeover-defense bankers and that Oasis Capital is weighing a proxy fight, with the next earnings call scheduled for September 24, 2026.

Vail Resorts shares have risen 9.1% since its last earnings report, outperforming the S&P 500. The company reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of $8.81 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $8.97, while revenue of $1.21 billion met expectations and declined 7% year over year. Results were pressured by record-low snowfall and warm temperatures that reduced visitation by 15%, with Mountain segment revenue down 6.8% to $1.13 billion and Lodging revenue down 9.1% to $75.3 million. Management lowered its full-year outlook, now expecting net income of $128 million to $162 million and Resort Reported EBITDA of $735 million to $755 million, and noted early pass sales for the 2026/2027 season are down about 10% in units. The company maintained liquidity with $1.1 billion in total cash and revolver availability and declared a quarterly dividend of $2.22 per share.

Vail Resorts reported first-quarter revenue of $1.21 billion, down 7% year on year and slightly below analyst expectations. The company, which operates luxury mountain resorts across more than 30 global locations, posted a mixed quarter with a narrow beat on EBITDA estimates but a revenue miss. Among the 10 consumer discretionary leisure facilities stocks tracked, the group overall beat revenue consensus by 2.6% while next-quarter guidance came in 0.8% below estimates. Live Nation was the standout performer with revenue of $3.79 billion, up 12.1% and beating expectations by 6.1%, while Dave & Buster's was the weakest with revenue of $559.2 million, down 1.5% and missing estimates by 3.1%. Sphere Entertainment achieved the fastest revenue growth among peers, up 37.7% to $386.4 million, and United Parks & Resorts reported revenue of $278.3 million, down 3% and in line with expectations.