Peak Resorts reported results for the fourth quarter and full year of its 2015 fiscal year, periods that ended April 30, 2015.
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Revenue for fiscal 2015 was just 0.3 percent below the record level achieved in fiscal 2014, despite weather events that impacted two of the three major holiday periods of the 2014-2015 ski season.
Fiscal 2015 net loss was $1.9 million, or 22 cents per share; adjusted for a one-time pre-tax charge of $5.2 million related to debt restructuring, net income would have been $1.3 million, or 16 cents per share.
Reported EBITDA for fiscal 2015 was $25.4 million, level with the prior-year record despite the weather challenges.
Resort operating expenses were down $1.3 million for the full year, reflecting cost savings from recent infrastructure upgrades, including highly efficient snowguns.
During the spring, demand was strong for season passes for the 2015-2016 ski season; sales were up 8 percent in units and 11 percent in dollars over the prior year through April 30.
Board declared third quarterly cash dividend of 13.75 cents per share of common stock with the current indicated annualized dividend at 55 cents per share.
Timothy D. Boyd, president and chief executive officer, commented, "Looking back at the past ski season, we are very pleased with the consistency shown by our resort portfolio. Fiscal 2015 reported EBITDA was $25.4 million, level with the prior year, although weather adversely affected us during two of the three major holiday periods of the 2014-2015 season.
"Our board and management view reported EBITDA as the primary measure of the success of our strategic plan, as it captures both the value of our actions to improve resort operating performance and our ability to generate strong cash flows to finance further growth.
"The healthy reported EBITDA for fiscal 2015 was driven by 1.6 million skier visits for the year, down just 1 percent from fiscal 2014, which was a record-breaking year, with modest growth in visits at our Northeastern resorts.
"The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) recently reported that the U.S. ski industry tallied an estimated 53.6 million skier and snowboarder visits over the 2014-2015 ski season, down about 5 percent from the prior year because of the weather challenges experienced in almost all geographic regions during this past winter.†■