Why Is Marriott Vacations Stock Gaining Thursday?
Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corp. (NYSE:VAC) stock traded higher Thursday after the vacation ownership company reported second-quarter results that topped Wall Street estimates and raised its full-year 2026 adjusted earnings guidance.
Adjusted earnings came in at $2.31 per share, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $1.97. Revenue increased 6% year over year to $1.32 billion, above expectations of $1.29 billion.
Net income attributable to common stockholders rose to $77 million, or $2.12 per diluted share, from $69 million, or $1.77 per diluted share, a year earlier. Adjusted net income increased 9% to $84 million, while adjusted EBITDA rose to $215 million from $203 million.
CEO Matt Avril said the quarter reflected stronger execution, with vacation ownership volume per guest increasing 23% and contract sales climbing 22% year over year. He said the company’s higher guidance reflects continued focus on contract sales growth and adjusted EBITDA expansion.
Vacation Ownership Drives Growth
Vacation Ownership revenue excluding cost reimbursements increased 10% to $853 million. Contract sales rose 22% to $545 million, while volume per guest increased 23%, driven by larger average transaction sizes.
Segment adjusted EBITDA increased 7% to $246 million, although the adjusted EBITDA margin narrowed to 28.9% from 29.8% because of higher marketing and sales costs.
The Exchange & Third-Party Management segment reported revenue excluding cost reimbursements of $50 million, down 2% from a year earlier. Segment adjusted EBITDA declined 7% to $22 million.
Balance Sheet And Outlook
Marriott Vacations ended the quarter with $928 million of liquidity, including $211 million in cash and cash equivalents, and reported a net corporate leverage ratio of 4.0 times, down from 4.2 times at the end of the first quarter.
The company raised its full-year 2026 adjusted earnings per share guidance to a range of $8.25 to $9.05 from its prior outlook of $7.05 to $7.80. The new guidance is above the analyst consensus estimate of $7.41.
Marriott Vacations also increased its full-year contract sales forecast to $2.08 billion-$2.115 billion from $1.815 billion-$1.885 billion, adjusted EBITDA guidance to $805 million-$830 million from $755 million-$780 million, and adjusted free cash flow guidance to $410 million-$460 million from $375 million-$425 million.
VAC Stock Price Activity: Marriott Vacations shares were up 4.19% at $106 during premarket trading on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Photo by T. Schneider via Shutterstock