Posted
[Ed. note: The following is an excerpt of a press release. -J]
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: FUN), a leader in regional amusement parks, water parks and active entertainment, today hosted the New York Stock Exchange Closing Bell ceremony at its flagship park, Cedar Point, in Sandusky, Ohio. Cedar Fair’s president and chief executive officer, Matt Ouimet, kicked off the summer season as he rang The Closing Bell amidst a celebration at the park’s front gate plaza.
“We are very pleased to be able to celebrate the start of summer here at Cedar Point with the NYSE, our employees, our investors and our guests,” said Ouimet. “It is an honor that the NYSE has chosen to bring Wall Street to the shores of Lake Erie to celebrate FUN. While we have completed only one-third of our operating days so far this year, the early-season guest reaction to our new attractions and entertainment offerings has been extremely positive. The combination of innovative new offerings along with long-standing guest favorites ensures we deliver the ‘Best-Day-of-Summer’ experience our guests have come to expect from Cedar Fair.
“As we look forward to the peak vacation months of July and August, we remain confident that we are poised to achieve our fifth consecutive year of record results,” Ouimet continued. “Our season pass sales and group event bookings continue to be favorable when compared with the same period a year ago and our average in-park guest per capita spending continues to grow consistent with our long-term strategy expectations. These positive trends are a direct result of our value-creating strategies which place a particularly strong emphasis on protecting and enhancing the value of the overall guest experience.”
Ouimet stated that early-season revenue trends were positive through this past Sunday, June 29, 2014 – up approximately 1% on a comparable-park basis. The increase in average in-park guest per capita spending was somewhat offset by decreases in attendance and out-of-park revenues. Based on these early-season results and the positive trends in season pass sales and group event bookings, the Company reaffirmed its 2014 full-year guidance. It expects to achieve net revenues in the range of $1.16 billion to $1.19 billion and Adjusted EBITDA in the range of $435 million to $450 million. The Company also remains on track to achieve its FUNforward long-term growth goal of $450 million in Adjusted EBITDA at least one, if not two years, earlier than its original target of 2016.
“We continue to believe in the strength of our business model, our long-term strategy, our high-quality assets and our employees. We are confident we will continue to deliver exceptional value to our guests and, in turn, to our investors,” concluded Ouimet.
Read the entire press release from Cedar Fair. Also: See Cedar Fair CEO Matt Ouimet talk to Bloomberg about the company.