Cedar Fair L.P. profits, attendance take a dip
CEO: Revenue record for year is still on track
8/6/2014SANDUSKY — Nicked by bad luck and bad winter weather, Cedar Fair L.P. said Tuesday that its second quarter profits decreased 7 percent to $43.9 million, or 79 cents per share.
A year ago in the second quarter, the Sandusky-based amusement park chain had profits of $47.4 million, or 85 cents per share.
While earnings were down, Cedar Fair did have revenues of $363 million, up slightly from a year ago when revenues were $362 million. The company said quarterly revenues were bolstered by a 4 percent increase in average in-park spending, which rose to $43.94 per guest.
But the earnings were off because of a 2 percent decrease in park attendance to 7.7 million guests and a $3 million decrease in out-of-park revenues (hotel stays) to $35 million.
Cedar Fair shares fell $1.70, closing at $50.81 on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday.
The company said its higher per capita spending was because of improvements in food and beverage programs at its 11 amusement parks and four waterparks.
The attendance slip and drop in out-of-park revenues were attributed to three things — the closing of Cedar Point for a weekend in early June because of a water main break, partial flooding the last week of June at its Valleyfair Park near Minneapolis, and prolonged school calendars throughout the Midwest and other regions following harsh winter weather earlier this year.
With the second quarter complete, Cedar Fair said it remains on track to achieve record full-year revenues of between $1.16 billion and $1.18 billion.
“We have approximately one-third of the operating season still ahead of us, and we expect 2014 to be another record year for Cedar Fair,” said Matt Ouimet, company president and CEO.
Also Tuesday, the company declared a dividend of 70 cents per share, payable Sept. 15 to shareholders of record as of Sept. 4.
Contact Jon Chavez at: jchavez@theblade.com or 419-724-6128.