Barnes...I know that early shedding can be a sign of either a) a widespread mast failure in an area where the deer depend heavily on mast, b) significant stress incurred throughout the breeding season, or c) injury. Essentially, very early shedding is usually an indication of very poor physical condition. So I would hypothesize that late shedding is, at the very least, not a bad thing.
That buck is an absolute BEAST. What a trophy. I would be gunning for him next year, he has to be flirting with the 7-8 yr old range. Hopefully he dosen't regress further into a 4pt that wouldn't be legal to harvest.