SeaWorld Entertainment released its quarterly earnings report this week, posting an 84% decrease in profit. In spite of the numbers, the company still remains positive for the future. Joel Manby, Chief Executive Officer, told analysts, “We acknowledge we still have much work ahead of us. Let me assure you that we remain steadfast in our efforts to overcome these challenges and improve the performance of the company.”
Net income for the quarter was at $5.8 million, down from $37.4 million at the same time last year. Earnings per share were 22 cents; last year they were 43 cents. Analysts had been expecting this year to stay around 40 cents. Revenue was at $391.6 million, down from $405.2 million.
Attendance was at 6.5 million guests, down 1.6 percent. The company says this is due to a few factors: the timing of the Easter holiday, heavy rains in Texas, and “brand challenges” over the killer whales in captivity.
The profit decline can largely be attributed to discounted ticket prices, a decrease in attendance and increased marketing expenses. Marc Swanson, chief accounting officer, said, that this year’s discounts “were going up against kind of nondiscounted numbers last year. Going forward we expect that dynamic to improve a little bit.”
They still plan to offer discounts, but base prices have increased, so profits should still start to go up from the current level. The company expects attendance to go up due to a later Labor Day and the fact that Halloween falls on a Saturday this year.
A new marketing campaign uses TV and print ads to highlight a variety of their animals, in an effort for visitors to learn more about them and their care. Manby said, “The TV ads we’ve been running definitely drive a positive sentiment for the company and offset some of the negatives out there. When people get the facts about the company, it definitely neutralizes or improves their sentiment about us.”
SeaWorld confirmed that they expect “earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to be between flat and up 3 percent for 2015.”
News source: Orlando Sentinel
Photo credit: SeaWorld
