Austin, Texas – November 02, 2026 -- Oasis Management, whose funds own about 9.6% of Vail Resorts (NYSE: MTN), a stake worth more than half a billion dollars, has launched a proxy contest. It is seeking two board seats at the ski operator's annual meeting on December 14, 2026, and argues that the stock has lost more than $8 billion in market value over five years.

Oasis has nominated Robert Chapek and M. Ashton Hudson and is urging shareholders to vote for them on its BLUE proxy card. It also launched a campaign website and published an open letter to shareholders. Oasis founder Seth H. Fischer said the aim is to make Vail Resorts better, "not break it up."

Vail Resorts shares fell more than 50% in five years, Oasis says

According to the letter, the total shareholder return trailed the median of the company's self-selected peers and the Dow Jones U.S. Travel & Leisure Index over every period from one to ten years. Oasis measured this before media reports of its engagement.

Oasis says the company lowered its earnings guidance twice in each of the last three fiscal years. It missed the midpoint of its initial guidance by about 10% on average over that period.

North American skier visits dropped 15% in 2025-2026 against a 10% industry decline

In the 2024-2025 season, industrywide skier visits rose 3% while visits to Vail Resorts' properties fell 3%. In 2025-2026, the company's North American visits fell 15% against an industry decline of 10%.

Pass unit sales for the 2026-2027 season are down about 12%. That accelerates from two straight seasons of roughly 3% annual declines. Oasis adds that analysts cut their fiscal 2027 and 2028 EBITDA estimates by an average of 11% and 13%, respectively, over the last 12 months.

Resort EBITDA margins have declined four years running despite a 42-property portfolio

Since fiscal 2016, Vail Resorts has grown from 12 to 42 properties and raised Resort net revenue by 79%. Oasis says the scale has not produced operating leverage. Resort Reported EBITDA margins have fallen for four consecutive years, to their lowest level since fiscal 2014, excluding pandemic-hit fiscal 2020.

Effective ticket prices have risen about 45% since fiscal 2016, while Resort Reported EBITDA per skier visit has gained only 8%. Management's fiscal 2027 guidance midpoint implies Resort Reported EBITDA roughly flat on fiscal 2022, with a margin more than 600 basis points lower.

Oasis faults a board that added one director in 2.5 years

Oasis points to CEO Mr. Katz's 30 years on the board and 20 years as CEO or Executive Chairperson. It says the long-term incentive plan has no performance-based criteria. The board has added one director in the past two and a half years. That addition came more than a year after Oasis first raised board refreshment in July 2025, and only after the engagement became public.

On the guest experience, Oasis cites long lift lines, overcrowding and rising food prices. It notes that just one Vail Resorts property ranks in the top ten of SKI Magazine's reader surveys for Eastern or Western U.S. resorts. It also cites the 2024-2025 holiday ski patrol strike at Park City Mountain, which stemmed from a dispute over a $2 hourly base wage increase, among other demands.

Oasis outlines six initiatives to lift margins and valuation

Oasis proposes six initiatives:

• New and expanded pass and ticket offerings that widen price and access options
• Better food and beverage quality, variety and value
• Expanded year-round use of mountain assets
• A modernized marketing strategy aimed at locals, core customers and less frequent guests
• A more compelling loyalty program
• Technology upgrades to improve the customer experience and efficiency

Oasis says these steps offer a path to profit margin expansion, renewed earnings growth and a re-rating of the valuation multiple.

The company's proxy statement describes its strategy as at "just the beginning," and the board says recent initiatives are only starting to show their potential. The company has also said Oasis has not offered a credible plan to improve shareholder returns.