SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc. has announced plans to cut 320 jobs as part of a three year restructuring programme which will shave $65 million off costs.  $40 million of those net savings are targeted by the end of 2018.  The cuts will fall across all 12 theme parks in the group.
SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc. released their third quarter results on November 8th showing a decline in revenues (2 per cent) for the first nine months of the year compared to 2015, and a net loss of $0.6 million which compares to net income of $60 million for the same period last year.
Commenting on the results, Joel Manby, President and Chief Executive Officer of SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc., said, “One year into our three-year plan to increase value for our shareholders, we are delivering tangible results in key areas.  We are creating distinct guest experiences in our parks that reflect the fundamental repositioning of our brand from animal entertainment to experiences that matter. The introduction of several new exciting rides and attractions – including Mako and Cobra’s Curse – is driving attendance and season pass sales. In particular, we are seeing continued improvement of attendance trends in California and Texas, and third quarter attendance increased in Florida by 1.3%. Absent the decline in attendance from Latin America, which appears to be abating, Florida attendance would have increased 4.0% in the third quarter. We have also announced an extensive line-up of new attractions, shows and events for 2017, displaying our disciplined capital allocation strategy, focusing on high-return, value-enhancing projects.
“Importantly, we are using our capital more efficiently, introducing more new attractions with fewer dollars. Additionally, during the third quarter, we began executing a comprehensive cost optimization program that goes beyond the initiative we communicated last year and targets $40 million in net cost savings by the end of 2018, ” continued Manby. “We have also introduced new strategic marketing initiatives which have contributed to early season pass sales that are above the same period last year while new pricing strategies and selective price increases are being implemented to improve total revenue per capita. Overall, we are seeing indications of stabilization, and we believe our results by the end of 2017 and beyond will materially benefit from our focus on significant cost reductions, our brand repositioning, our strategic marketing and pricing initiatives and our continued commitment to consistent and disciplined capital investments.”
https://money.cnn.com/2016/12/06/news/seaworld-layoffs-2016/
