NEWS: SeaWorld strikes tentative deal for Middle East park

[jedimaster1227]

http://touch.orlandosentinel.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-80202275/

 

SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. said Wednesday that it has reached a tentative deal for a theme-park resort in the Middle East, which become the Orlando-based company's first overseas destination.

 

SeaWorld, which owns 11 parks across the United States, said it has signed a memorandum of understanding with a partner to "assess the viability of a multi-park development in the Middle East." It would not identify the partner, though SeaWorld said it was an entity with "an established track record of opening and operating world-class attractions."

 

SeaWorld executives said they are confident they will get a final deal done.

 

"We feel very good about the likelihood of this discussion of coming to fruition of us building these parks," SeaWorld President and Chief Executive Jim Atchison said on a conference call with analysts. "I would say our confidence is very high in it."

 

SeaWorld would not say how many parks it is likely to build nor exactly where. The company announced plans under previous ownership in 2008 to build a resort in Dubai that would have had a SeaWorld, Discovery Cove and Aquatica, though it abandoned the project a year later amid the economic crash.

 

The announcement of the overseas plans came on the same day that SeaWorld reported a rugged first-quarter financial performance in which attendance and earnings slumped. The company blamed a later Easter holiday, a typically period that didn't arrive until April of this year.

 

SeaWorld said it lost $49.4 million during the quarter, which was 22 percent wider than the $40.4 million it lost during the first three months of 2013. SeaWorld typically operates at a loss during the first quarter, as about half of its parks close during the winter.

 

Total revenue tumbled 11 percent to $212.3 million, though the company said its sales-per-visitor rose 2.2 percent to $69.72, thanks to higher prices and other strategies.

 

Attendance fell 13 percent, from 3.5 million visitors a year ago to just over 3 million. SeaWorld said the first quarter typically accounts for between 12 percent and 15 percent of its full-year attendance.

 

But SeaWorld said its performance has improved markedly in the second quarter. The company said its year-to-date revenue was down just 3 percent through the end of April — compared to 11 percent at the end of March — after the company realized the full benefit of Easter.

 

"We had a terrific April and we have good momentum going," Atchison said, adding that SeaWorld executives "feel good about" their May results, as well.

 

The company said it is not making any changes to its full-year earnings guidance and that it still expects attendance to growth in 2014. SeaWorld plans to open new attractions in 9 of its 11 parks, most of which are opening just before the summer.

 

Executives signaled that they are likely to enact another round of ticket price increases at SeaWorld Orlando as early as Monday, just ahead of the Memorial Day weekend. Atchison also said he was confident the company's flagship park would fare well this summer, even as Universal Orlando opens its much-anticipated "Wizarding World of Harry Potter — Diagon Alley."

 

"I'm sure our friends at Universal will do a terrific job with Harry Potter," Atchison said. But he added, "We feel very good about how we're positioned in Orlando."

Edited May 14, 2014 by jedimaster1227

[SharkTums]

I want my Shamu Shaped Island!!!!

[CPSFMMCW]

Love that last bit when they mentioned Universal. I dunno why, but I like it when other companies and parks are friends and are nice to each other.

[dubaidave]

Excited!

[coasterbill]

Love that last bit when they mentioned Universal. I dunno why, but I like it when other companies and parks are friends and are nice to each other.

 

 

I honestly really think all of the parks in Orlando are good for eachother. Disney is the big draw but people are very likely to visit Universal and Sea World while they're vacationing in Orlando and having those other options probably makes Orlando even more appealing than it already was. I'm sure when Harry Potter opened a lot of those people who may not have even gone to Orlando otherwise spent at least a day at a Disney park.

 

I wouldn't think this if they were regional parks but I think in this case the competition is helping them, especially because many of the people that are staying a few extra days to visit the other parks are staying at a Disney or Universal resort. Even SeaWorld has "partner" hotels and while I'm not sure what their agreement is with them, more people having more of a reason to spend more time there can only be a good thing.

 

speculation>

[Jew]

Universal Orlando and Sea World shared the same owner for quite some time (Blackstone) until Blackstone sold its Orlando stake to Comcast.