The largest regional amusement park operator in North America, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, has taken over as the parent company of Dorney Park and Wild Water Kingdom, having previously been Cedar Fair. On July 1, 2024, following the completion of the second quarter, Cedar Fair and Six Flags merged.
Six Flags today released separate financial results for standalone heritage Cedar Fair and solo legacy Six Flags for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, to make things easier for investors and financial analysts.
Richard A. Zimmerman, the previous CEO and president of Cedar Fair, was victorious in the competition to head the combined business. He stated in a statement, "I am particularly happy with the heritage Cedar Fair portfolio's second quarter performance, which created a 570-basis-point boost in legacy Cedar Fair adjusted EBITDA margin in the quarter and produced record levels of attendance and net revenues." Although weather has had a negative impact on July demand trends, Zimmerman stated that the company is confident that the combined portfolio is well-positioned to have a strong full-year performance in 2024.
Zimmerman stated that the business has moved swiftly to carry out its initial integration objectives after the transaction was finalized on July 1. He made note of the combined enterprises' extremely diverse reach and unprecedented geographic scope in the local amusement park industry. He thinks the combined firm is well-positioned to provide value to consumers and shareholders because it has a solid balance sheet with plenty of liquidity. "To tap into the great potential we believe lies in the merging of these historic portfolios of assets, we are focused on advancing our strategic goals and establishing our basic operating principles across our portfolio in the near term," Zimmerman said in closing.
The business cited a difference between the number of operating days in the second quarter of 2024 and 2023 (789 versus 736). For the second quarter of 2024, legacy Cedar Fair's net income amounted to $56 million, or $1.08 per diluted LP (Limited Partner) unit. This is in contrast to a $54 million net income, or $1.04 per diluted LP unit, for the second quarter of 2023.
In the second quarter of 2023, Legacy Cedar Fair reported adjusted EBITDA of $151 million, although adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Taxes, Interest, Depreciation, and Amortization), which management claims is a significant indicator of operating results, totaled $205 million. The fiscal calendar shift, a greater season pass base, and increasing demand in general for new, marketable products were the main causes of the increase in attendance. Comparing the second quarter of 2024 to the same period in the previous year, Cedar Fair recorded an increase of $35 million in operational expenditures and expenses. Increases in operational costs of $5 million, cost of goods sold of $5 million, and selling, general, and administrative (SG&A) expenses of $26 million were the main contributors to the rise. The business stated that the $11 million in acquisition and integration-related costs, the increase in equity-based compensation expense as a result of higher performance expectations, and the effects of the current quarter's fiscal calendar shift were the main causes of the increase in SG&A spending.
With 27 amusement parks, 15 water parks, and nine resort locations spread throughout 17 states in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation (NYSE: FUN) is currently the largest regional amusement-resort operator in North America.