Cedar Fair Reports Attendance And Revenues Through Labor Day

SANDUSKY, Ohio, Sept. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: FUN), a leader in regional amusement parks, water parks and active entertainment, today announced that preliminary net revenues through Monday, September 4, 2017, were $1.0 billion, down less than one percent when compared with the last year's record results for the same period.

On a same-park basis, attendance through Labor Day was 20.3 million guests, average in-park guest per capita spending was $47.08 and out-of-park revenues were $115 million.  All are comparable with the same time last year.    

Commenting on the 2017 season to-date, Matt Ouimet, Cedar Fair's chief executive officer, stated, "We are pleased with the guest response to our 2017 capital programs.  Mystic Timbers, our world-class roller coaster at Kings Island, and our water park transformations at Knott's Berry Farm and Cedar Point Shores have delivered attendance above our expectations.  However, we have experienced more than a few instances of unfavorable weather on some of our traditionally peak attendance days – including the recent Labor Day weekend - and it has proven difficult to fully recover these attendance shortfalls up to this point in time. 

"We are optimistic about the growth opportunities ahead of us for the remainder of 2017, as well as over the long term," added Ouimet.  "In fact, our most immersive entertainment offerings, including our Halloween and new WinterFest events, are about to begin.  These unique events, both by scale and by offering, provide a guest experience unmatched by other regional entertainment options."

Looking ahead, the Company's 2018 capital investment lineup, which includes four roller coasters, expanded family attractions, high capacity dining venues and increased resort offerings, is already generating excitement.  In particular, Steel Vengeance, a record-breaking hybrid coaster at Cedar Point, has had both guests and the media talking about its massive steel and wooden structure for months.  "We continue to build upon our regional brands by giving our guests unique and immersive entertainment experiences each time they visit our parks.   We are confident that our capital lineup for next year, combined with more resort offerings at Cedar Point and new season pass programs, will make 2018 another great year for Cedar Fair," added Ouimet.

Based on year-to-date results, the Company expects full-year 2017 Adjusted EBITDA to be between $480 million and $490 million. Ouimet said that the Company now expects to achieve its FUNforward 2.0 long-term Adjusted EBITDA goal of $500 million, or more, by its original target date of 2018.

About Cedar Fair

Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: "FUN"), one of the largest regional amusement-resort operators in the world, is a publicly traded partnership headquartered in Sandusky, Ohio. Focused on its mission to become "THE place to be for FUN," the Company owns and operates 11 amusement parks including its flagship park, Cedar Point, along with two outdoor water parks, one indoor water park and five hotels. It also operates an additional theme park under a management contract. Its parks are located in Ohio, California, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Missouri, Michigan and Toronto, Ontario.

Forward-Looking Statements

Some of the statements contained in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements as to the Company's expectations, beliefs and strategies regarding the future.  These statements may involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such statements.  Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct.  Important factors, including general economic conditions, adverse weather conditions, competition for consumer leisure time and spending, unanticipated construction delays, changes in the Company's capital investment plans and projects and other factors discussed from time to time by the Company in reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") could affect attendance at the Company's parks and cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations. Additional information on risk factors that may affect the business and financial results of the Company can be found in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and in the filings of the Company made from time to time with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation to correct or update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

This news release and prior releases are available online at www.cedarfair.com.

SOURCE Cedar Fair

Related Links

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