VAIL RESORTS REPORTS EARNINGS

Vail Resorts reported a loss of $42.1 million in its first quarter -- which is usually its weakest quarter because ski mountains are closed during those months. The company typically reports a loss in this quarter which comprises August, September and October.

Vail Resorts owns Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone in Colorado, and Heavenly in California.

Although lodging bookings were down 13% compared with last year, ski pass sales were 11% higher for the same period. And in another piece of encouraging news, advance airline bookings at Eagle County Airport are up about 4% from last year.

CEO Rob Katz predicts that lodging guests are waiting until closer to their trips to book their vacations, a pattern of guest behavior that has become more the norm in the past 5 to 7 years.