NEW YORK - Six Flags (NYSE:SIX) Entertainment Corporation (NYSE:FUN) shares jumped 5.9% after the amusement park operator reported strong October attendance and season pass sales, despite missing earnings expectations for the third quarter.
The company, which completed its merger with Cedar Fair (NYSE:FUN) in July, reported third quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.10, well below analyst estimates of $2.98. Revenue came in at $1.35 billion, slightly ahead of the $1.34 billion consensus forecast.
While earnings missed the mark, investors focused on Six Flags' upbeat outlook. The company said attendance over the five-week period ended November 3 totaled 6.5 million visits, a 20% increase compared to combined attendance for legacy Cedar Fair and Six Flags over the same period last year.
"The strength of our business and considerable demand for our parks was particularly evident over the past five weeks, when attendance was up more than one million visits compared to combined legacy Cedar Fair and legacy Six Flags attendance over the same period last year," said Six Flags President and CEO Richard A. Zimmerman.
Season pass and membership sales for 2025 were up 8% over the past five weeks compared to last year. Based on the strong October performance, Six Flags now expects fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA of $205-215 million.
The company also announced new long-term targets, including reaching at least $800 million in annual unlevered pre-tax free cash flow by 2027. Six Flags aims to increase annual attendance to over 55 million guests and expand full-year modified EBITDA margins to more than 35% to achieve this goal.
For the third quarter, attendance totaled 21.0 million guests, with 9.2 million visiting legacy Six Flags parks added in the merger. In-park per capita spending was $61.27.
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