The deal provides the Canadian company with increased financial strength to expand, while giving Vail one of the world’s most popular mountain resorts.
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Vail Resorts vowed to keep most Whistler employees, with the exception of some areas of duplication in corporate functions.
Vail would acquire 100 percent of the stock of Whistler, whose shareholders would receive 17.50 Canadian dollars per share in cash and 0.0975 shares of Vail’s common stock, Vail and Whistler said in a joint-press release. (TSX: WB) (“Whistler Blackcomb”) today announced that they have entered into a strategic business combination joining Whistler Blackcomb with Vail Resorts.
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.
Looks like Whistler Blackcomb is the latest component of Vail Resorts’ “global footprint”.
Whistler Blackcomb’s chief executive officer, Dave Brownlie, will join Vail’s senior leadership team in the mountain division and will continue as the resort’s chief operating officer, according to the statement.
The proposed $1.04 billion acquisition will further grow the already-enormous brand to 12 resorts in North America under the Vail banner.
The company owns nine world-class mountain resorts and two urban ski areas including Vail, Beaver Creek, Park City in Utah; Heavenly and Kirkwood in Lake Tahoe, California; Perisher in Australia and Afton Alps in Minnesota.
A key element to Vail’s purchase of Whistler will be incorporating the resort into its successful season pass program. In New York, Vail Resorts stock also was trading at the highest rate in at least a decade, reaching about $154 midday. The Company’s Mountain segment operates around 10 mountain resort properties and two urban ski areas, as well as ancillary services, primarily including, ski school, dining and retail/rental operations. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news. For the protection of AP and its licensors, content may not be copied, altered or redistributed in any form. Doing so may result in civil and/or criminal penalties.
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“The weather challenges that we have – over the long term, I mean weather continues to become probably more volatile on a regional basis”, Brownlie said.
