In company news, shares of Vail Resorts ( MTN ) climbed to a record high on Monday after the ski-hill operator today announced its $1.06 billion purchase of Whistler Blackcomb Holdings (WB.TO) in British Columbia.
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Vail Resorts’ unsolicited takeover bid worth $1.1 billion was a “very compelling” offer according to Whistler Blackcomb CEO Dave Brownlie.
“For our company to have a strong entree into that opportunity is meaningful”.
Whistler Blackcomb is one of the worlds most visited ski resorts and could be considered Canada’s most famous and widely renowned skiing destination.
Brownlie added that he hopes the transaction will help Whistler Blackcomb make inroads into the eastern seaboard of the USA, as well as Latin America, especially Mexico.
Vail pledged to keep leadership local, retain most staff and continue ongoing negotiations with First Nations groups about its master development agreement.
“We think that working with Vail will accelerate our business plan and we’re excited to move forward with it”. Whistler Blackcomb, whose board has unanimously approved the deal, is also nominating one of its directors to join Vail’s board. The company said it plans to integrate Whistler into its season pass products for the 2017 to 2018 season.
With the acquisition, Vail will control major high-end ski destinations including its namesake property in Colorado, Heavenly in the Lake Tahoe area of California and Nevada, and Park City Mountain Resort in Utah, the largest US ski resort.
Vail operates resorts in the USA and Australia.
Vail Resorts is paying almost $1.4 billion to purchase Whistler Blackcomb, in a deal that’s expected to close this fall.
Under the transaction, Vail Resorts would acquire all the stock of Whistler Blackcomb, whose shareholders would receive $13.30 (Canadian $17.50) per share in cash and 0.0975 share of Vail Resorts’ common stock, for a total value of $27.36 (Canadian $36) per share. After the transaction closes, Whistler Blackcomb shareholders will own just under 20 million shares of Vail Resorts stock, giving them about 10% ownership collectively.
Under the ownership of Whistler Blackcomb Holdings, the price of a seasons pass crept up over the years to approach $2,000.
Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass is a lift pass that gives access to all Vail Resorts-operated destinations, as well as to premier ski resorts around the world that it has partnered with.
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Note to readers: This is a corrected story.
