Marriott Vacations Q4 Earnings & Revenues Beat Estimates, Stock Up

Core Viewpoint - Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation (VAC) reported strong fourth-quarter 2024 results, with both earnings and revenues exceeding expectations, leading to a 2% increase in share price during after-hours trading [1]. Financial Performance - Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) reached $1.86, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.51 by 23.2%, although it was slightly down from $1.88 in the same quarter last year [3]. - Quarterly revenues amounted to $1,327 million, exceeding the consensus mark of $1,245 million by 6.6%, and reflecting an 11% year-over-year increase [3]. Segmental Performance - Vacation Ownership: Revenues totaled $1.27 billion, up from $1.13 billion in the prior-year quarter. Total contract sales increased by 6.7% year-over-year to $400 million. Adjusted EBITDA for this segment was $221 million, down 7% from $236 million in the previous year, with a margin contraction of 550 basis points to 27% [4]. - Exchange & Third-Party Management: Revenues declined to $52 million from $62 million year-over-year, with revenues excluding cost reimbursements down 13% to $49 million. Active interval international members decreased by 1% to 1.55 million, and average revenue per member fell by 2% to $35.36. Adjusted EBITDA was $22 million, down 27% year-over-year, with a margin contraction of 800 basis points to 44.2% [5]. Expense and Cash Flow Analysis - General and administrative expenses decreased to $64 million from $84 million year-over-year. Total expenses increased by 12.1% to $1.22 billion from $1.09 billion in the prior-year quarter [6]. - Adjusted EBITDA for the overall company was $185 million, slightly down by 0.5% from $186 million year-over-year [6]. Balance Sheet Overview - As of December 31, 2024, cash and cash equivalents were $197 million, down from $248 million at the end of 2023 [7]. - The company had $3.1 billion in corporate debt and $2.1 billion in non-recourse debt related to its securitized notes receivable [8]. 2025 Outlook - Management projects contract sales to be between $1.850 billion and $1.925 billion, compared to $1.813 billion in 2024. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to range from $750 million to $780 million, up from $727 million in 2024. Adjusted EPS is anticipated to be between $6.30 and $7.00, compared to $6.56 in 2024. Adjusted free cash flow is expected to be between $290 million and $350 million [9].