UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Upgrades Vail Resorts to Buy with a PT of $53 on Sell-Off Opportunity

Stifel Nicolaus increases its rating on Vail Resorts MTN from Hold to Buy and establishes a $53 price target on shares. Stifel Nicolaus comments, "Our $53 price target is derived off our FY14 sum of the parts (SOP) analysis in which we assume Vail's mountain and lodging segments can command 8.5x/11.0x multiples, respectively. With Vail shares declining 12% (S&P -5%) in the last two months, we believe this has created an attractive entry point as we push towards the 2012/2013 ski season. While Vail shares have historically traded lower during the summer months we believe continued encouraging demand signals toward the 2012/2013 ski season, continued strong international visitation, revised summer program offerings, and solid FCF support could all be catalysts for the shares." MTN closed at $41.49 on Friday.