Vail Resorts (MTN) Risk Factors

Inflation increases the cost of goods we purchase and services we buy, the cost of capital projects and wages and benefits for our workforce. Although we may take measures to mitigate the impact of inflation through pricing actions or cost reduction measures, if we are not able to offset inflationary costs, our results of operations will be negatively impacted and possibly in a material manner. As a result, the impact of high and prolonged inflation could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations. Inflationary pressures also increase the cost of living and cost of travel, which decreases consumers' disposable income and could impact our guests' discretionary spending habits or willingness to visit our Resorts, which could reduce customer demand for the products and services that we offer and negatively impact our financial condition or our results of operations. In addition, the existence of inflation in certain economies has resulted in, and may continue to result in, elevated interest rates. Our business could be adversely impacted by increases in the cost of borrowing from elevated interest rates. Elevated interest rates increase the borrowing costs on new debt, including debt we may refinance, as well as any existing variable rate indebtedness, and could affect the fair value of our investments.

Our ability to attract guests to our Resorts is partly influenced by weather conditions and by the amount and timing of snowfall during the ski season. Unfavorable weather conditions can adversely affect skier visits and our revenue and profits. Unseasonably warm weather may result in inadequate natural snowfall and reduce skiable terrain, which increases the cost of snowmaking and could render snowmaking, wholly or partially, ineffective in maintaining quality skiing conditions, including in areas which are not accessible by snowmaking equipment. On the other hand, excessive natural snowfall may significantly increase the costs incurred to groom trails and may make it difficult for guests to access our Resorts. Additionally, there is scientific research that emissions of greenhouse gases continue to alter the composition of the global atmosphere in ways that are affecting and are expected to continue affecting the global climate. The effect of climate change, including any impact of global warming, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations as a result of decreased snowfall, increased weather variability and/or warmer overall temperatures, which could adversely affect skier visits and our revenue and profits. Revenues and profits generated from mountain summer activities/sightseeing and golf peak season operations are not nearly sufficient to off-set off-season losses from our other mountain and lodging operations. This impact could be exacerbated by climate change. There can be no assurance that our Resorts will receive seasonal snowfalls near their historical averages. An example of weather variability was observed throughout the 2023/2024 North American ski season, where significant weather-related challenges disrupted operating days and impacted demand, including lower snowfall for the full winter season compared to the prior year period across our western North American resorts and limited natural snow and variable temperatures at our Eastern U.S. resorts (comprising the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast). Past ski season snowfall levels or consistency of snow conditions can impact sales of pass products or other advanced bookings. Additionally, the early season snow conditions and skier perceptions of early season snow conditions can influence the momentum and success of the overall ski season. Unfavorable weather conditions can adversely affect our Resorts and lodging properties as guests tend to delay or postpone vacations if conditions differ from those that are typical at such Resorts for a given season. Although we have created geographic diversification to help mitigate the impact of weather variability, there is no way for us to predict future weather patterns or the impact that weather patterns may have on our results of operations or visitation. A severe natural disaster, such as a forest fire, may interrupt our operations, damage our properties, reduce the number of guests who visit our Resorts in affected areas and negatively impact our revenue and profitability. Damage to our properties could take a long time to repair and there is no guarantee that we would have adequate insurance to cover the costs of repair and recoup lost profits. Furthermore, such a disaster may interrupt or impede access to our affected properties or require evacuations and may cause visits to our affected properties to decrease for an indefinite period. The ability to attract visitors to our Resorts is also influenced by the aesthetics and natural beauty of the outdoor environment where our Resorts are located. A severe forest fire or other severe impacts from naturally occurring events could negatively impact the natural beauty of our Resorts and have a long-term negative impact on our overall guest visitation as it could take several years for the environment to recover.

Provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, provisions of our debt instruments and other agreements and provisions of applicable Delaware law and applicable federal and state regulations may discourage, delay or prevent a merger or other change of control that holders of our securities may consider favorable. These provisions could: - delay, defer or prevent a change in control of our Company;- discourage bids for our securities at a premium over the market price;- adversely affect the market price of, and the voting and other rights of the holders of our securities; or - impede the ability of the holders of our securities to change our management. For instance, provisions of the indentures governing our indebtedness stipulate that the Company must repurchase the senior notes at the option of their holders upon the event of a change in control of the Company. Further, a change of control would constitute an event of default under our credit agreements.

We have a substantial amount of debt, which requires significant interest and principal payments. As of July 31, 2024, we had $2.8 billion in total indebtedness outstanding. This amount includes (i) $959.8 million of indebtedness pursuant to the term loan facility under the Vail Holdings Credit Agreement that matures in 2029, (ii) $600.0 million aggregate principal amount of our unsecured senior notes due 2032 (the "6.50% Notes"), (iii) $575.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 0.0% convertible notes due 2026 (the "0.0% Convertible Notes"), (iv) $369.1 million with respect to our obligation associated with the Canyons long-term lease, (v) $114.2 million with respect to the EPR Secured Notes under the master credit and security agreements and other related agreements with EPT Ski Properties, Inc. and its affiliates ("EPR"), as amended (collectively, the "EPR Agreements"), (vi) $52.6 million with respect to our obligations associated with outstanding debt of certain employee housing entities, (vii) $37.1 million with respect to the New Regional Policy loan between Andermatt-Sedrun and the Canton of Uri and Canton of Graubünden (the "NRP Loan"), and (viii) $27.9 million with respect to our obligations associated with Whistler Blackcomb employee housing leases. We also have a credit agreement at Whistler Blackcomb that matures in 2028 (the "Whistler Credit Agreement"), which had no amounts outstanding as of July 31, 2024. Collectively, the Vail Holdings Credit Agreement, the Whistler Credit Agreement, the EPR Agreements and the NRP Loan are referred to herein as the "Credit Agreements," and such facilities, the "Credit Facilities." Our borrowings under the Vail Holdings Credit Agreement are subject to interest rate changes substantially increasing our risk to changes in interest rates. Under the Vail Holdings Credit Agreement, borrowings under the Vail Holdings Credit Agreement, including the term loan facility, bear interest annually at a rate of SOFR plus 1.60%. As of July 31, 2024 we also have, on a cumulative basis, minimum lease payment obligations under operating leases of approximately $371.1 million over the term of the leases. Our level of indebtedness and minimum lease payment obligations could have important consequences. For example, it could: - make it more difficult for us to satisfy our obligations under our outstanding debt;- increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions;- require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our indebtedness, including the annual payments under the Canyons lease, thereby reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund dividend payments, working capital, capital expenditures, real estate developments, marketing efforts and other general corporate purposes;- limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industry in which we operate;- place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors that have less debt;- limit our ability to borrow additional funds, refinance debt, or obtain additional financing for working capital, capital expenditures, debt service requirements, acquisitions or other general corporate purposes;- make it difficult for us to satisfy our obligations, including debt service requirements under our outstanding debt; and - cause potential or existing customers to not contract with us due to concerns over our ability to meet our financial obligations, such as insuring against our professional liability risks, under such contracts. Furthermore, our debt under our Credit Facilities bears interest at variable rates, which may be impacted by potential future changes in interest rates due to reference rate reform. We may be able to incur additional indebtedness in the future. The terms of our Credit Facilities, the 0.0% Convertible Notes and the 6.50% Notes do not fully prohibit us from doing so. If we incur additional debt, the related risks that we face could intensify. Additionally, our Credit Facilities also impose significant operating and financial restrictions on us. These restrictions limit our ability and the ability of our subsidiaries to, among other things: - incur or guarantee additional debt or issue capital stock;- pay dividends and make other distributions on, or redeem or repurchase, capital stock;- make certain investments;- incur certain liens;- enter into transactions with affiliates;- merge or consolidate;- enter into agreements that restrict the ability of subsidiaries to make dividends, distributions or other payments to us or the guarantors;- designate restricted subsidiaries as unrestricted subsidiaries; and - transfer or sell assets. The indenture governing the 6.50% Notes contains a number of significant restrictions and covenants that limit our ability to: - grant or permit liens;- engage in sale/leaseback transactions; and - engage in a consolidation or merger, or sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets. In addition, the Whistler Credit Agreement contains restrictions on the ability of Whistler Mountain Resort Limited Partnership and Blackcomb Skiing Enterprises Limited Partnership (together "The WB Partnerships") and their respective subsidiaries, and the EPR Agreements contain restrictions on the ability of Peak Resorts and its subsidiaries, to make dividends, distributions or other payments to us or the guarantors. We and our subsidiaries are subject to other covenants, representations and warranties in respect of our Credit Facilities, including financial covenants as defined in the Credit Agreements. Events beyond our control may affect our ability to comply with these covenants. The terms of any future indebtedness we may incur could include more restrictive covenants. We may not be able to maintain compliance with our financial covenants in the future and, if we fail to do so, we may not be able to obtain waivers from the lenders and/or amend the covenants. There can be no assurance that we will meet the financial covenants contained in our Credit Facilities, when in effect. If we breach any of these restrictions or covenants, or suffer a material adverse change which restricts our borrowing ability under our Credit Facilities, we would not be able to borrow funds thereunder without a waiver. Any inability to borrow could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, a breach, if uncured, could cause a default under the applicable agreement(s) governing our indebtedness, in which case such we may be required to repay these borrowings before their due date. We may not have or be able to obtain sufficient funds to make these accelerated payments. If we are forced to refinance these borrowings on less favorable terms or cannot refinance these borrowings, our results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Our business relies on the use of large volumes of data. We collect and retain guest data, including credit card numbers and other sensitive personal information, for various business purposes, such as processing transactions, marketing and other promotional purposes. We also maintain personal information about our employees. We could make faulty decisions if data is inaccurate or incomplete. Maintaining the integrity and security of data can be costly and is critical to our business, and our guests and employees have a high expectation that we will adequately protect their personal information. A significant theft, loss, loss of access to, or fraudulent use of customer, employee, or company data held by us or our service providers could adversely impact our reputation, and could result in significant remedial and other expenses, fines, and/or litigation.